


Frozen In Time

by MayHiddles97



Category: Tom Hiddleston - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Victorian, teacher, vampire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-31
Updated: 2015-10-20
Packaged: 2018-01-06 22:33:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 8
Words: 35,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1112307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MayHiddles97/pseuds/MayHiddles97
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"8 years passed and he hadn't changed a bit, not a bit. Some people thought him strange but Aleida didn't." Aleida Harris has fancied her flute teacher Tom Hiddleston since she was 9. She's now 17 and still in love with him but will she ever be able to tell him? Tom has always been mysterious and never seems to age and she finally finds out why... A vampire fanfic set in the 1800's. Enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mr Hiddleston

Aleida loved her flute lessons. Mainly because of Mr Hiddleston. Or Tom as she called him, sometimes Thomas when frustrated with him. She met him 8 years ago, in 1806 when she was 9. He was, and still is, a family friend that her father knew from down the street and he had invited him over for tea. The first time, or second as he had apparently held her as a baby, she set eyes on him he had perfect pale skin, long-ish light brown curly hair and beautiful crystal blue eyes. She really loves his eyes. She was fascinated by them and still is now. They're bright blue but green and clear at the same time. She had found out that he played the flute, but more importantly people how to play, that day. Aleida suddenly had a new-found fascination in playing the flute and had a gorgeous crystal eyed tutor to teach her. Her mother and father were delighted that she had finally found an interest in something and a hobby. She had got the hang of playing the flute on her first try and she loved it, especially with Toms help.

8 years passed and he hadn't changed a bit, not a bit. Some people thought him strange because he never changed but Aleida didn't think so. She just wondered how he kept up such a good appearance even after 8 years of no change at all! People sometimes stared at Tom and Aleida if they walked down the street together which she thought was rude so she just ignored them. She had made a few enemies because of Tom. Lots of girls on her street took a fancy to him as well but he never seemed to take any notice of them and stay at Aleida's side, so she didn't really care too much. They had always been close because of the amount of time they spent together, not just only during lessons but at her mother and fathers parties and just hanging around with each other. They both spent a lot of time at each others houses and Tom never seemed to get fed up or annoyed with Aleida hanging around with him all the time because she was one of his closest friends.

Aleida had been a small, bubbly nine-year old with long blonde curls that stretched down her back. Over the years she had defiantly changed and had grown to the height of Tom's chin: a perfect height and become a lot better at playing the flute. Aleida was now 17 and Tom 32. Or so he claimed! He didn't look a day past 24! She still fancied him… just a bit. She had never had much of an interest in boys at her age because they all seemed so immature and childish compared to Tom. It seemed that Mr Hiddleston had set a very high standard that know body else seemed to be able to reach! She consistently thought to herself. She'd just have to stick to fancying Tom.

Aleida was currently gazing at him, with her head resting on her hand, as he played through a new piece he wanted her to play called Chanson Baladée. "How do you do it?" She spoke up as he pulled the flute away from his lips. "Do what Leia?" he asked as he gestured for her to stand and attempt to play the piece. She smirked when he called her the nickname he had come up with a few years ago. She stood and continued "How do you play without even breathing? It's like you have no need for air!" Tom turned and grinned his usual grin with a slither of tongue showing between his teeth and crinkled eyes. He chuckled and pointed at the sheet of notes again not giving her an answer. An hour passed and Tom had played the piece through 6 times already because Aleida couldn't get the hang of it. "Thomas I cannot play this! It's impossible to play without breathing!" She half heartedly threw her flute on to the sofa in the middle of the small room where her lessons took place every Monday, Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday's to her delight, then sat down beside it. "Your playing the first 9 bars fine Leia! You're thinking about the breaks too much and not the playing. Practise tomorrow and show me on Thursday okay?" He raised his eyebrows at her, questioning. "Okay. But I'm not passing out from air deprivation just for this Tom!" She said crossing her arms. He smirked and raised his eyebrows at her sarcasm.

"Play it again?" Leia asked grinning at him. Tom sighed and picked up his own flute and started to play with ease… 'And no breathing' Aleida thought.  
When he had finished playing it… again, he turned and looked down at her. "Do you like it?" He asked her. Aleida gave him a funny look. She panicked for a second, thinking he had caught her looking at his bum or something. "Like what?" She asked, brow furrowing. "The piece! I thought you would like it, that's why I brought it with me. You don't have to play it if you don't want to" He said putting his flute back down. "Oh that! Yes of course I like it. I just can't get the hang of it!" She smiled at him relieved. "Okay. Just make sure you practise!" He said giving her a meaningful look. "Yeah Thomas" She replied as he lent down and pecked her cheek goodbye. He had always kissed her cheek when he left since she met him and she still blushed every time to her embarrassment! She watched him walk out of the room as her turned round and waved as he walked grinning at her. "See you Thursday!" Leia nodded and waved back at him and called bye back. She stayed sitting for a while until she started to pack her flute up and went to put it back in her bedroom.

When Aleida had put everything away, she went downstairs to dinner with her Mother and Father. She sat down and it was strangely quiet between the three of them where they were normally talkative and lively. It seemed tense and awkward. She started to eat her dinner that a maid had brought in and noticed that her mother looked extremely guilty and didn't seem to want to look at Aleida. She eventually looked up from her dinner and at Aleida. "Darling, now that you're seventeen we thought that you might be alright looking after yourself for a while. And as you know it's your father and I's 20 year wedding anniversary in two weeks, we've been planning on going away to celebrate." Aleida blinked not seeing any problem having been left alone at home for a day or two before and she had been fine then. She smirked at her father as he did a celebratory dance in his chair next to her mother who also smirked and rolled her eyes. "That's lovely. Where do you plan on going?" Aleida said, interested as to why her mother looked so guilty. Her mother turned her head to look at her father as if she was silently begging him to join in the conversation. He looked round at her mother, having finished dancing, and over to Aleida. "We have bought tickets to go on a beautiful boat to America darling!" He grinned as he told her. Eyes widening she exclaimed "America?! But it'll take you weeks to just get there!" She panicked having never been left alone for that long before.

She knew she wasn't a child any more and defiantly could look after herself but she still didn't like the idea of being home alone for 3 months! "We'll be away for about 3 months Aleida. 6 weeks travelling there, 3 weeks in America and 6 weeks back. You'll be fine!" Her mother tried to assure her. "But if you really don't want to stay alone, maybe someone could stay with you or you go to them?" She asked. "What about your Aunt Elizabeth? She'd be thrilled to have you!" Aleida thought about it for a minute. "What about To- Mr Hiddleston? He's a family friend and has been for years!" She said, instantly brushing off the idea of going to her Aunts. Not that she didn't love her Aunt! She just really didn't fancy staying at her house for that long. Her mother and father looked at each other. "I see no problem with that" Catherine smirked. "Neither do I" Her father said around a mouthful of food. Catherine had always known that Aleida and Thomas were very close and loved being in each others company. There was always giggling and mucking around, heard from downstairs, during the lessons which she thought was lovely. She should have known Aleida would want to ask him and she knew Thomas would accept more than happily!

It was arranged, with an all but willing Tom, that he would stay at the house with Aleida for 4 weeks then Aleida would stay at Toms for 4 weeks then back again for 3 weeks. It seemed that Tom was more excited then Aleida was! He came in the house grinning on Thursday for Aleida's flute lesson. "Didn't fancy going round your Aunts then?" He asked laughing at Aleida's reaction. "What do you think?" She replied grinning back at him. Tom seemed to have forgotten all about the new piece that he had wanted Leia to play because of his excitement. They spent a couple of lessons planning what they were going to do over 3 months!

The remaining two weeks left passed in a flash when Mr Hiddleston turned up with a case of clothes for 4 weeks (not that he lived 5 houses down anyway!) that Aleida took to his room, and then waved off Catherine and Owen just outside the house. They were going straight to the docks to get on the boat to America. 'em style="box-sizing: border-box;"I hope they bring back some stuff' she thought. She had always been interested in America for some reason. Tom started talking and snapped her out of her thoughts. "Three whole months of flute practise every day Leia! Fantastic!" He exclaimed closing the door, grinning and rubbing his hands together in excitement. Aleida groaned. "Do you know how boring that would be? We have a whole house and all you want to do is stay in the tiny practise room?" She smirked; secretly delighted that she would be spending 3 months by themselves with the mysterious man as she followed him down the hall. "Ok ok! But let's do one lesson today at least!" He said skipping up the stairs and she followed willingly into the little room.

He turned and gave her an evil grin. "Now. You can play me Chanson Baladée first as I know that you've been practising! Especially in all that extra time you've had because I forgot!" Leia attempted to fight back a smile but failed and grinned guiltily at him telling him she still hadn't got the hang of it. "You promised to practise it!" He said smiling back. He walked over to her and booped her on the nose as a telling off, which she thought was adorable, and handed her the flute. "Sorry Tom" She said grinning at him. Leia took her flute and stood in front of the stand with the music sheet on it. She played half way thorough until her fingers went into auto pilot and got completely messed up. She started laughing with the flute still at her lips. It started making funny noises as she blew air through it as she continued laughing. This made Tom start giggling behind her which made them both start hysterically laughing at… absolutely nothing! 'God we're insane!' Tom thought to himself as he wiped a tear from his cheek. They had laughing fits quite often and normally they were over strange little things like this. They had the same sense of humour which was one reason they get on so well.

*************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

It was two glorious weeks of fun and laughter when Aleida stupidly started talking to herself in her room and Thomas happened to be standing outside for whatever reason. "Him and his stupid blue eyes. Who even has eyes like that?! It's been eight years and I'm still crazy about him. It's ridiculous!" She mumbled, scrunching her nose. Tom was standing outside her door still and couldn't quite contain his curiosity. He debated with himself in his head then decided and walked into the bright room, seeing Aleida picking up pieces of clothing and shoes off the floor. He sat down on her bed heavily, making a huge squeaking noise, almost making Leia, in her bent over position, fall over in fright. "There is a door to knock on Thomas!" She eyed him carefully as he watched her tidying. "Unless you want to kill me from fright!"

"Had he heard her? Please don't let him of heard her' She prayed. He ignored the comment and chose to just ask who she had been talking about. "Whose eyes were you talking about? They sounded lovely." He mentioned carefully, crossing his legs as he looked at her with his head tilted. Aleida's eyes widened and her head snapped round to look at him. He had heard her! "What are you talking about?" She said, blushing and looking away from him so he couldn't see. "Don't pretend! I heard you talking to yourself when I – walked past." He smiled gleefully. Leia squinted at him. "Walking past huh! I wasn't saying anything!" She said, blushing even more. "Is this love Leia?" Tom asked in his most innocent voice whilst raising his eyebrows at Aleida trying not to smirk.

He loved the blush that was continuously getting deeper on her cheeks, travelling down her neck. The truth is he loves most things about her. Tom had adored her when she was a tiny baby and had laughed and smiled at him even then! He thought she was the sweetest little girl he had ever come across and was delighted when she had asked to have flute lessons with him. He loves her dimples and smile when she laughs and how, most of the time, he is her source of amusement. But now he really does love her. Only in the last couple of years he had come to love her more though. And he hates himself for it because he knows nothing could ever happen and that she would never love him. 'Leia must have fallen for some boy I don't know of' He thought to himself in disgust.

Aleida finally decided to give Tom an answer. "Yes Thomas, its love" she said quietly as she stared at his eyes which had seemed to have lost their happy glow. "Who is the lucky man then?" Tom tried to say enthusiastically with a forced smile on his lips which Aleida noticed straight away. She had always been able to tell if something was wrong or if he wasn't happy because his smile wouldn't quite reach his eyes. What was the matter? Is he really bothered about someone that she may like, even though it's himself for christ's sake! She knew that he'd always cared but he had never been interested in someone that she may like. She had never told him and couldn't tell him anything like that because it's him. He would never forgive her if she told him, so she wouldn't see him again. No way was she letting that happen

"Stop asking questions Thomas!" Leia said jokingly looking behind her at him, only to see him with his eyes squinted looking suspiciously at her. "Come on Leia, you can tell me! You know you can trust me." Tom said teasingly as he walked towards her. She started to feel a bit panicked as he got up off the bed with a creak to get a bit nearer and interrogate her a bit more. "Tom it's nothing, really! I'm really hungry so I'm going to get some food" She said as she turned and almost ran out of the room. Tom watched, confused as she had never been like this before. Had he said something? Leia tells him most things about her life as they had always been close but she had never tried to avoid telling him something and ended up changing the subject and running out of the room. He decided to leave it for the day and go back to the practise room and compose some music.

When he sat down, with a huff, he couldn't seem to be able to think about anything but Leia and some mystery man, let alone write or play anything. He sat there staring into space for a while until he heard Aleida come back up the stairs to get dressed to doubt. 'She's been down there ages!' Tom thought to himself. She was usually quite quick eating her breakfast. He realised then that she had probably been chatting to one of the maids down there, Ada probably. They had been friends for years as she had been hired before Leia was born. She was a nice girl and Leia had nothing against talking to maids like some other people did, so they become friends when Leia was little. Tom had always loved how Leia can become friends with anyone even if they are in a lower class to her. She had never seen the problem with it. He stayed silent as he could hear Aleida shuffling around in her room then her door shut. She knocked quietly on the door and poked her head round to his surprise. "I'm just going down to the market if you want to come with me? I need some stuff… and bread." She said smirking at Toms eye roll. "Of course I'll come" He replied getting up, grabbing his over coat and following Leia out the door.

They arrived back at the house a couple of hours later and went straight to dinner, having missed lunch. Once they had eaten they sat in the living room for a few hours until they both, or just Aleida, grew tried and went to bed. Leia had avoided the subject that Tom wanted to talk about completely which just made him even more suspicious.

The next day, Tom decided to continue his investigation and find out who this man was. He went downstairs to the dining area to find Leia eating breakfast and talking to a different maid, who's name he thought was Rachel. He plonked down in the seat opposite Leia and grinned at her and she smiled back suspiciously. Rachel smiled at the both of them and waved goodbye so they could eat their breakfast. "Good morning" Aleida said around a mouthful of bread, that she had bought yesterday, which just made Tom chuckle. "What do you like so much about bread?" He asked giving her a strange look. Leia swallowed and thought about it for a minute. "I don't really know! I've just always loved it" She replied not thinking much else of it. Tom rolled his eyes and smirked at her as Ada bought some more food and tea out on a tray. Tom said Good Morning and thanked her then turned back to Leia.

"You still haven't answered my question" He said raising an eyebrow. "What question? The one about the flute scales? You know I'm rubbish at scales!" She said scrunching her nose in disgust. The scales were the only bad part of playing the flute and Tom constantly teased her about her little knowledge of them and was always trying to teach her how to play them. Tom rolled his eyes at her obliviousness. "About your man Leia not the scale" He winked at her which made her smirk even through the panic on her face. "Why are you so interested?" She demanded, instead of answering him, and squinted an eye at him. "I just want to know Leia" He tried to say innocently. "I don't believe you Thomas" Leia said as she poked her tongue out at him, then walked out saying she needed to get changed. He decided to follow her and wait in her room. He couldn't really answer the question as to why he wanted to know either but if he had to watch her go off with some man, then he wanted to know who he was.

He walked into Leia's room quietly, knowing that she was in the bathroom that attached to her bedroom, and sat on a red chair that stood opposite. She eventually walked out, looking gorgeous in a floor length cream dress with puffy shoulder sleeves. He recognised it then realised that it was the dress he had bought her for her 17th birthday last month. He couldn't think of what else to get her and had seen the dress in a shop window and knew that she would love it. He had defiantly chosen well! She stopped in the doorway when she saw him, huffed and walked into the room. 'He's really asking for it!' Aleida thought as she marched over to her cabinet to get her hairbrush. Her temper was rising quickly and she really didn't want to snap at him but if he spoke another word about it she would loose it. She turned to look at Tom to find him admiring her dress then realised that it was the dress that he had bought her.

"Does it look nice? It's the first time I've worn it!" She smiled as she picked up the trailing material and twirled round in a circle to show off the back. When she pulled it out of the box on her birthday she loved it instantly, but she hadn't wanted to wear it until now as she didn't want to ruin it. "Yes I love it. You look beautiful and it defiantly suits you!" Tom said happily as he smiled, knowing that she loved it by the look on her face. Leia smiled back and continued with her hair. "I'm sure your love will think so also" he mumbled, slumping into the chair and crossing his arms.

"Why won't you tell me Leia? It can't be that bad!" He said looking up at her with puppy eyes as she brushed through her thick curls. Aleida shut her eyes and breathed in through her nose and puffed it back out again, calming herself. 'Stuff it' she thought. 'If he really wants to know I'll tell him! If he won't leave it he'll just have to know the truth!'

"Because it's you" She whispered, not looking at him and continuing to brush. She had been hoping that he wouldn't ask what she had said and loose interest. "Who?" Tom said, sitting up from his slouching position in interest. 'Damn' She thought. Tom wasn't sure he wanted to know now. He might have to watch Leia marry this man so did he really want to know? Leia whirled round to face him. Her face was bright red and she looked angry. "I said, because its you Thomas! I love you! I fell for you and your damn eyes the first day I saw you and I haven't been able to get over you since!" She near to shouted at him. She watched Toms eyes widen and his back straighten even more. 'Oh god what have I done' She thought, regretting it instantly, as she watched the shock spread throughout Toms face. Why would he ever accept the fact that she loved him? She suddenly realised that she was still staring at him. She felt tears start to fight their way up so she turned, with her back to him, and stood on the other side of the room to put some space between them, unsure of what to do.

She had thought about running down to Ada and Rachel as they were the only other people she could think of that she could trust but cast that idea aside as she didn't want to upset Tom further by running off again. She still stood with her eyes wide in panic and stared out of the window to try and calm herself. Aleida couldn't think of anything that she could say or do to get out of this now. Tom was probably thinking of ways to get out of staying with her for another 3 months! She prayed and prayed that he would laugh it off as they stayed in silence for what felt like hours.


	2. Realisation

She couldn't have just said that. 'Why would she ever love me?!' He thought, trying to hear different. He couldn't think! He had too many thoughts going round in his mind and couldn't decide which one to ponder on. He wasn't too sure what to do with himself… He knew what he wanted to do but he couldn't make himself act on it.

'I've completely ruined everything! Why did I do it?! How could I have told him after almost 9 years?' Aleida shouted to herself in her head. She still hadn't turned to Tom who still hadn't moved for what seemed like hours. He must be angry or embarrassed. She just hoped that he could forgive her and wouldn't storm out and leave her alone for 3 months, or leave her at all!

Tom slowly turned his neck, with his eyes still wide, to look at Aleida and noticed that she had her back turned to him with her face buried in her hands. He furrowed his brow in confusion then realised that she must be upset or embarrassed because of what she had told him and that she was probably thinking that she had upset. He wasn't upset in the slightest! He was in shock with joy and excitement building but didn't know what to do! He didn't want to leave her any longer so he quickly decided. 'Right' He thought then jumped out of the chair, almost knocking it over in his haste.

Aleida suddenly heard an abrupt movement and quickly turned her head to look. Tom was making his way towards her, rather than out of the door, with huge steps of his long legs. "Tom?!" She said panicking and starting to back away. He must be really angry. She had seen him angry many times before but never this angry!

Tom could see the fear in her eyes, as she turned to see where the noise had come from, as he walked towards her. He wasn't sure what was going through her mind but he didn't pause to reassure her. "Tom wh-" Aleida started but she couldn't say or think much more before Tom had pushed her against the wall and crashed his lips into hers. Leia's eyes widened in shock and disbelief that Thomas was actually kissing her! Tom's hands were on her waist, from where he had pushed her against the wall, which then moved to the back of her neck and her right cheek to keep her there. Tom moved closer, pressing his whole body against hers, as she finally overcome the shock and started to kiss him back, confirming what she had shouted at him.

All the thoughts that had been spinning round in Tom's head stopped abruptly and were replaced with 'She actually loves me! Leia loves me! She really loves me!' which his mind sang as he deepened the kiss and stroked Leia's cheek with his thumb. Aleida's mind was still in a state of shock, unable to think any coherent thoughts. All she could do was try to memorise the feel of Tom's lips which she had dreamed of for years. She pulled back too soon to catch her breath but as usual Tom seemed as full of air as ever! Aleida looked up into Toms eyes, which looked ever better up close, as he smirked at her. She'd never been this close to him before and she rather liked it! Tom put his huge hands on either side of her face and smiled. "Please don't cry." He said, noticing that she had red blotchy eyes. "I love you too" He whispered to her. Her mouth opened slightly in shock. "You love me?" She asked with a hint of doubt in her voice which was shaking slightly. "I really love you Leia. I really do!" Tom replied laughing slightly at the end of his sentence.

Tears welled again in Leia's eyes as she launched herself into Tom's arms and wrapped hers around his neck in a tight hug. He chuckled in her ear, pulled back and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm sorry I shouted at you" She mumbled looking up him. "You kept pestering about who I loved and it's been you the whole time and I got a bit annoyed" She blurted out in apology. "It's fine Leia. I get it!" He said then swept her up off her feet and carried her over to her bed. "And what do you plan on doing here, Thomas?" Leia asked with a smirk.

"Not what you're thinking of Aleida!" He said as he sat next to her and winked. "Why didn't you tell me this before?!" He said with raised eyebrows as he tucked a piece of lose hair behind Leias ear. "Because I thought you would hate me and wouldn't want me! I thought you would have interest in other women, not me! I'm just… me!" She said blushing for what felt like the 50th time! "I know you're you which is why I could never hate you Leia! Over the last couple of years I've only had interest in you" which made Leia smile and look down at her hands, in her lap, in embarrassment. Tom smiled and put his finger tips under her chin to make her look at him. Rather than saying anything else he kissed her again. Leia wrapped her arms around his neck and dragged him backwards, whilst still kissing him, so he landed on top of her, knees either side of her waist. She pulled back and looked up at him, grinning, pleased with herself. He kissed her nose then pulled her head up into another kiss. Oh how he loved this already and it had only been five minutes! Leia pulled back and looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "What?" Tom said feeling paranoid. "You really scared me when you randomly jumped up and came marching towards me!" She said rolling her eyes. Tom chuckled and kissed her again.

Aleida woke up with a start and started to remember what had happened the day before. She looked to her right to find two beautiful eyes peering at her from the pillow next to her head. Tom even looked gorgeous when he had just woken up! His hair was messed up, from where she kept running her hands through it the night before, but she thought it suited him better than the normal tidy curls which she also loved. She snuggled into his side and Tom wrapped his arm around her waist dragging her closer so she was flat against him. He kissed her forehead then flopped his head back onto the pillow.

"It's Monday Leia" Tom whispered as he stared up at the ceiling. "And?" Leia said looking up at Tom in question and putting her hand on his bare chest. He looked down at her and smirked with a raised eyebrow. "You normally have a flute lesson on a Monday! Just because your parents are away and all this has happened, don't think your getting out of it!" He said grinning. "Tooooom!" Aleida groaned. "Can't we just stay in bed all day?" She looked up giving Tom puppy eyes and a kiss on the nose. "As tempting as it is, if your parents found out we had, not only been in bed together, but been in bed all day, they would go crazy! So no we can't" Tom sighed rather disappointed himself. Aleida sighed as well and rolled out of his arms, after kissing him, and off the side of the bed to get dressed. "Aleida!" He said stopping her and grabbing her hand. "Did you say that you had loved me since the first time you saw me yesterday?" He asked smirking at her. Leia blushed, looked at her feet and nodded. Tom flashed his dimple smile at her then she went skipping off to the bathroom. Tom, feeling bashful, went back to the spare room that was currently his and got dressed as well. He walked down to the dining area as he had yesterday to see Leia already there again in a light blue gown. They finished off their breakfast and strolled up to the practise room.

Leia had finally got the hang of Chanson Baladée to Toms delight. He was prancing around the room with happiness after almost 2 months of having to play it over and over again! Leia just sat and watched, laughing at him. "Finally! I told you, you would be able to play it didn't I!" He said as he smiled gleefully at her. "I'll never be able to play it as well as you though! You don't seem to even breathe!" She said smirking at him. Tom looked down at his feet as if he was embarrassed then looked up and gave her his evil grin that he pulled when he was up to something. "What?" Aleida asked suspiciously. "Nothing! Shall I go and get lunch to eat up here? It's almost one O' Clock!" He said sounding surprised. "Yes that would be nice." She answered with her eyes squinted suspiciously at him as he walked out of the door and down the stairs.

Tom came back up a few minutes later with a tray full of lunch and sat down next to her on the chair. He kissed her then gave her, her lunch. Half way through, Tom decided to poke Aleida in the side which made her squeal as she was very ticklish and he knew it! "THOMAS" she managed to shout as she got away from his hands, that kept tickling her sides and refused to let go, to try and catch her breath. She stuck her tongue out at him and went to sit on the window cill where it was cooler and rubbed her sides. He smirked back and went back to his lunch. She had a handful of bread, which she had an unhealthy obsession with, from her lunch in her hand still so she continued eating whilst gazing out the window, watching random people walk past. She suddenly felt a sharp pain run through the side of her face. "OUCH" Leia shouted through the silence as she touched the side of her face. "What?!" Tom looked round at her wondering what had hurt her. "I bit my damn cheek and now I have a mouthful of blood!" She exclaimed, talking funny because of the pain. Tom had realised that now he and Aleida were properly 'together', he would have to tell her what he is eventually. So he got up, realising this is the perfect moment to show her, and walked over to her slowly. When he reached her he put his hands on either side of her face, as he had done the day before, and kissed her.

His tongue slipped past her open lips and found the source of the blood on her cheek. Aleida gasped, kissing back, as she felt his tongue brush over the chunk of skin that she had bitten. She felt a strange stinging on her cheek, as he continued to kiss her thoroughly and gasped again when she could no longer feel any pain. Tom pulled away and looked into her eyes. Leia immediately poked her own tongue into the side of her cheek, only to find nothing there but the taste of Tom and a hint of blood. Her head snapped up to look at him. Tom smiled brightly which made Leia do a double take at his mouth. He suddenly had longer fangs than he had before! He shut his mouth for a second then smiled again and the longer teeth had gone. Aleida's jaw dropped as she stared at Tom. "Wha-. Are you? I don't understand?" She stuttered as Tom continued to stare at her. "I healed you." Tom said with a hint of a smile.

All Aleida could do was stare and wait for her brain to stop shouting 'Vampire' at her. Tom stared at her worryingly. "I can see that" Was the first thing she said that had relief sweeping over Tom as he thought he had scared her off. "But how?" She added. Tom smiled and stated the obvious. "I'm a vampire Leia" He said tilting his head to the side as he watched her. "But how?!" She repeated. Tom chuckled at this. "It's a very, very long story Leia." He mumbled as he touched her cheek to see if she would flinch at his touch, but she didn't. She trusted him still to his relief. "Your breathing and your eyes?" She said as a question. "Because I'm a vampire" Tom answered. Everything became clear and Aleida finally started to understand after 8 years of wondering. "I'm sorry I never told you Aleida" He apologised looking sorrowful as he leaned into her, pushing her back against the window. "I never wanted to scare you off and loose you so I never told you." Aleida frowned at him.

"It'd take a lot more than that to scare me off Thomas Hiddleston" She sighed "Especially as you only told me you love me yesterday! And no offence but I always knew that there was something about you. Your eyes are too beautiful to be human" She smirked. Tom laughed and leaned in to kiss her, amazed at how well she was taking this. "Thanks for the healing thing by the way" She said between kisses. "No problem" Tom mumbled back.

"So crosses have no affect on you?" Aleida asked. She had started asking questions about vampires. Lots of questions! "No. Not on any vampire I've ever known anyway." Tom squinted his eyes in thought. "What about garlic?" Leia asked smirking at Toms face as he looked at her, as if to say 'Really?'

"Of course it doesn't! That's just a myth that came about from somewhere or another! I quite like it actually!" He said smirking back at Leia. "Is the skin and eyes a vampire thing?" She shot another question at him. "My eyes were a dark blue before and I was pale anyway but I did turn a little paler." Tom said tucking his hands behind his head. They were lying on Aleidas bed next to each other in their night wear. It had got dark so quickly! He found it amusing that Leia already had an interest in vampires. He never thought he would tell her so he was buzzing with excitement.

"How old are you then?" Aleida asked, turning her head. Tom turned his head to her at this question. "In vampire years or human years?" Tom said smirking at her confusion. "Both?" She said with an eyebrow raised. "I was born in 1691 and I was 26 when I became a vampire so I'm still 26. But altogether I'm 123." He said looking sheepish. Aleidas jaw dropped, again. "I'm frozen at 26. Vampires are immortal as you probably know" He reassured her.

"Yes of course but I wasn't expecting that! You must have seen so much and met so many people!" She said her eyes still wide. He noticed her trying to hold a smile back and squinted at her. She coughed then muttered "Age Gap" In between another cough. Tom opened his mouth and scrunched his nose up in mock offence. He laughed loudly then growled a very inhumanly growl and rolled on top of Aleida with his arms outstretched on either side of her head. He leaned down to whisper in her ear. "What did you say?" He teased nipping her ear. "I didn't say anything Thomas" She whispered back in her most innocent voice. Tom chuckled back as he slowly kissed down the side of her neck and shoulder and back up again until he reached her mouth and hungrily continued to kiss her. Leia ran her fingers through his hair and pulled slightly to get him even closer to her. "I love you" He whispered in between a kiss. "Mmmphf" was all Leia get out as she had no air left and Tom's mouth was still full on with no need for air. He pulled back realising she needed to breathe and pulled back further to look at her.

"If I ever lost you, Leia" Tom said quietly resting his forehead against hers. "You won't ever lose me Tom" Aleida replied whilst trying to catch her breath. She brushed her thumb across his cheek and smiled at him. "If I were to ask you…" He paused to lean down and kiss her again, making her breathless once again. "If you wanted to not have to breathe or age" He said looking down as if he was embarrassed then peering up at her under his eyelashes. "What would you say?" He whispered, kissing her cheek. Aleida frowned and looked up at him confused. It hit her then as she realised what he had asked. "Yes" She replied immediately as she closed her eyes when he kissed her again. "Yes?" Tom asked, sounding doubtful before another kiss. "Yes" Aleida repeated pulling his head down further. "Are you sure?" Tom asked sounding worried and concerned which made Leia pull back and hold his face between her hands and looked into his eyes. "I love you and I always have. What makes you think that I wouldn't want to spend forever with you without growing old?" She asked tilting her head at him. Toms smile grew on his face as he continued looking at her.

"Because you'll be a vampire and I didn't think you would want to become one" He sighed. "Why wouldn't I?!" She answered looking slightly shocked. "You won't be able to go in the sun without one of these on for a start" Tom said pulling a necklace out from under his clothes. It was a silver, Celtic looking circle with cords that spread from the centre to the sides. "It stops the sun from burning me when I go outside. If I didn't wear it I would be dust" He said wincing. "This ring as well" He said whilst bring his right hand up to show Aleida his index finger that had a silver ring on with laced cords running the whole way round. "It's back up. Just in case my necklace snaps or something" He muttered. "They're beautiful. I don't see any problem with wearing something like that! And I've always wondered why you wear that ring" Leia said admiring both pieces of jewellery. "So you're not bothered about the sun?" Tom asked raising his eyebrows. "Nope" Aleida said sincerely as she smiled at him. "Right" he muttered looking down.

"What about blood?" He asked her as he looked back up. Aleida frowned at him. "What about it?" She asked. Tom sighed. "Well, all the legends about vampires drinking blood are true unfortunately" He said, sounding regretful. "Oh" Aleida whispered. "Whose blood do you drink then?" She said jokingly. Tom scrunched his nose at her question. "We don't have to drink blood all the time" He said, surprising Aleida. "Some vampires are stupid and indulge themselves in it all the time. That's how they get caught and how rumours start to spread. Which is why humans think all vampires are murderers" Tom said, sounding frustrated.

"I don't think you're a murderer" Aleida said quietly. Tom smiled at her and kissed her cheek.

They were still in the same position, on Leias bed, as they had been earlier. She was looking at Tom's necklace again that was hanging down from his neck. "What stops it from burning you?" She asked. Tom looked down at it as well. "It has some sort of spell or curse on it that prevents the wearer from being turned to dust" He told her. "Are you saying there are witches as well?!" Aleida asked staring at him open mouthed. "Of course there are! They aren't all bad like most people think. Like Merlin. He was a warlock and only used magic for good and to protect Arthur" Tom said, smiling at Leia. She stared back at him still slightly shocked. "You knew Merlin?" Leia said in a hushed voice. Tom laughed and shook his head. "No unfortunately, but lots of vampires did! They are still alive now; I've met some of them and they've told me a few things!" He exclaimed. "I'm going to have to meet some of your friends" Aleida said nodding at him with a grin on her face. She had always been interested in the legends of Arthur and Merlin and she couldn't wait to meet the vampires who had actually met them!

Tom was staring down at Aleida again, deciding what to do still. 'Does she really want this?' He thought to himself. Leia could see the worry and doubt in his eyes still. "Thomas, if you do this you won't ever lose me" She said quietly looking up at him. "The sunlight and blood isn't a problem if that's what you're worrying about" Leia said, reassuring him. He looked down at her and thought about it. "I know Leia, but do you really want to be a vampire and stay at 17 forever?" She smirked up at him and nodded. "I quite like being 17 actually. And, looking at you, I defiantly want more of this and to stay and be a vampire with you!" She said smiling at him.

"How do you it?" Tom sighed then cringed at her question. "I bite you" He said raising his eyebrow in suggestion. Leia knew this was coming but her eyebrows still rose in surprise. "Will it hurt?" She questioned trying not to let any fear seep through. "What part?" He asked. "Both" Aleida said furrowing her eyebrow. "The bite won't hurt. That's the good part!" Tom said smirking at her again then kissing her. He looked her directly in the eye after pulling back. "The rest will hurt as it's basically killing you" He said clenching his jaw. "That's my problem. I don't want to hurt you Leia" Tom mumbled as he brushed some hair out of her face. "I trust you Tom" She said wrapping her arms round his neck. Tom smiled at her with his fangs bared again. Leia gasped having only seen them once before. They weren't huge or deadly sharp like any of the myths and legends she had heard. They were just a tiny bit longer than his ordinary teeth and very slightly pointed at the ends. "I defiantly want to see more of those" She giggled at him. "And they don't make me trust you any less!" She winked.

"Are you sure?" Tom repeated, asking again if she really wanted this, as he kissed down her neck. "I'm sure" Aleida whispered back. "Will I still blush after?" She asked suddenly. Tom pulled back and gave her a funny look. Leia looked at him innocently. "My blush always gives me away when I'm lying or in embarrassing situations" She smirked at him. Tom paused to think about it. "Yes you will… Well I think you will. I still blush from time to time" He said as he went back to her neck and laughed when she let out a sarcastic sigh. Tom took a deep breath and let it back out slowly, puffing on Leia's neck which made her shiver. "Ready?" He whispered.

"Yeah" Leia said closing her eyes, readying herself for pain. But it didn't come. She felt a slight pressure on the side of her neck, which she had crooked to the left to give Tom room, then a wave of pleasure. Aleida gasped and shut her eyes, after having opened them in shock, and then put her hand on the back of Toms head pulling him closer. Tom moaned in pleasure just under Leias ear, to her delight, which just caused her to moan back. Tom suddenly grinded his hips into hers and moaned again, deeper this time, making her eyes open wide in surprise but every thing she looked at had started to go blurry and whirl round.

She started to feel a slight prickling in her neck which then travelled down to her shoulders and collar bone. It intensified uncomfortably and spread throughout her body making her scrunch her forehead up in pain and her stomach clench. Tom finally released his jaw and moved away from her neck with rosy cheeks and a small drop of blood in the corner of his mouth and looked at her face. She tried to look up at him but found she couldn't move. He realised this and put his hands on her head, just behind her ears, and tilted her head backwards so she could look at him. All she could do was stare at him as her vision started to black out in the corners. She managed to get a faint "Tom" out before her vision completely blacked out and the last thing she felt was Tom kissing her. The pain took over completely and in her mind she was screaming, even in her sleep.

When Aleida's eyes rolled back then shut, Tom let out a quiet sob then pulled the blankets of the bed back then lifted her into the space and put them back over her. He couldn't bear to see her in pain so seeing her like that was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do. He quickly walked out into the hall and into his room next door. The room was dark and only a little light was coming in from the window but it wasn't really a problem for him though as vampires can see well in the dark. 'Where did I put that necklace' he thought to himself as he rummaged through a small wooden box. Eventually, he pulled out a gold chain with the same symbol hanging off it as his necklace. Tom walked back into Aleida's room and walked over to her side of the bed and lifted her head slightly to clip the necklace around her neck then got onto the bed in the space next to her and rolled onto his side so he could see her. He didn't know when she would wake up but when she did, she would be a vampire. It was weird to think about and he couldn't imagine it either. He never thought it a million years that this would happen. And in such a short time as well. He didn't think that if he asked her that she would actually say yes! He drifted off to sleep, staring at Leia as she slept through the pain and blood loss.

The fire had spread throughout Aleida's body entirely, after an hour of lying still, but she was still unconscious. She was aware of the pain but couldn't be woken up by it because of the blood loss. Unfortunately, this was a long process and she was lucky to be unconscious throughout or it would have been a lot worse. The worst part was when the tingling had reached her heart. That she had defiantly been aware of. It had felt like heart palpitations at first but then it started to slow and slow until it was hardly beating and it had hurt! She could still feel the tingling sensation pumping her blood round though. Or it could have been throbbing from the pain. But she continued sleeping through it. If she woke up she might start screaming which would scare and upset Tom so she didn't even attempt at waking up. She preferred staying in her own mind for the time being.


	3. Red Eyes

The next morning, Aleida finally started to feel some consciousness coming back. The pain had faded and her heart had either gone very quiet or it had stopped completely. She remembered Tom saying that this process was practically killing her so she assumed she wasn't that alive anymore. Her mind wandered to Tom and where he could be now and what he's doing…

Tom was still lying in Aleida's bed next to her. He had just woken up and was staring at Leia's eyes, willing them to open. There was no rise and fall of her chest like there had been earlier which was a good sign of her waking up soon. 'Hopefully' He thought to himself. He was still staring at her, starting to worry, when suddenly Aleida's eyelids rolled back in one swift motion. She laid still staring at the ceiling as Tom sat bolt right up and leant over her. "Leia?" He asked quietly so he didn't scare her. Her eyes flittered over to look at him above her. She smiled slightly at him then moved one of her hands on top of her chest.

"Tom my heart has stopped" She mumbled looking worried. Tom tried to hold back a smirk. "It would have darling, you're a vampire" He said reaching out to hold her hand. "Yeah…" She said looking thoughtful. "Can I still eat bread?" She asked looking at him again. 'Why hadn't I thought about this before?' She scorned herself. Tom laughed this time and leaned down to kiss her. "Yes of course you can still eat your precious bread! We can still eat human food!" He laughed, grinning at her. She sighed back in relief. Leia smiled at him and tried to sit up. She had little strength at the moment even if she was immortal so Tom had to hold her hands and pull her up.

She completely took Toms breath away. He hadn't seen the change during the night but she looked slightly different but it made a big difference. Her skin had become paler and her hair had a very healthy shine. It made her look even more mysterious and beautiful than she had done before. The biggest change though was her teeth. Her fangs had become longer like his and they defiantly suited her! "You look beautiful" He whispered to her as she leaned into his side with her head on his shoulder. "Can I see?" She answered. Leia hadn't even thought about the changes! When she tried to slip off the bed her knees gave out beneath her but before she could fall Tom caught her around the waist.

"I think that's the quickest I've ever seen you move Thomas!" She said looking him up and down. "Vampire thing" He whispered back. Aleida's eyes widened but before she could ask any questions Tom moved back but kept her hands in his. He walked backwards leading her over to the mirror on her wall.

As soon as Aleida saw herself she gasped and her jaw fell in shock. Her eyes found Toms in the mirror. "Ta-daaa" He whispered, smirking at her making her chuckle. She looked back at herself again. "Tom. My eyes are red!" She exclaimed leaning closer to the mirror to get a better look. Tom was standing behind her now with his arms wrapped around her waist. She looked at him in the mirror with panicked red eyes! "They will fade after a couple of weeks and turn the same colour as mine. It's the venom that turned you into a vampire; it affects your eyes for a while. I'm sorry, I should have warned you" He said reassuring her as he pulled her back against him. "They'll be the same as yours?!" She said surprised and looking slightly pleased. He nodded and smiled at her then rested his chin on her shoulder. "Did it hurt?" He whispered into her ear. Aleida flinched at the question as she looked at him again.

"It didn't at first, when you bit me. But then I started to feel a tingling down my neck which spread everywhere. It felt like fire! I couldn't feel much but that for ages and I couldn't wake up. The worst part was when my heart stopped" She said wincing, remembering the pain. "It was the venom that was hurting you. You must have passed out from blood loss" He said looking down guiltily.

"It was worth the pain Tom" Leia said as she turned in his arms to face him and wrap her arms around his neck. She went up onto her tip toes to kiss him and run her hands through his hair. Instead of leaning down, Tom ran his hands down her back and under her butt where he hoisted her legs around his waist and wrapped his arms around her waist again to hold her up. He walked over to one of the walls and pushed her against it to get closer to her and continued to kiss her. Aleida couldn't believe how amazing it was to be able to kiss Tom without having to pause to breathe! She pulled away eventually as she was overcome with questions and confusion. "Do you sleep in a coffin?" She asked seriously. Tom snorted and threw his head back laughing. Aleida smirked at his neck. "Of course I don't sleep in a coffin! Some vampires choose to but I certainly don't!" He said, kissing her nose.

"Are there any other vampires round here?" She said suddenly feeling nervous about meeting others. Tom sighed looking depressed. "Vampires haven't been careful enough. Our population has decreased so much because they haven't been careful and the superstition of humans leads to lots of vampire deaths. There are hardly any in London now" He said looking back at Aleida. "You've been careful then?" Leia asked, putting her hands round the back of Tom's neck, looking at his eyes. "Yes I wouldn't be here with you otherwise" He said smiling at her. "Over the last few years I had been given some funny looks and comments though because I haven't aged in the 25 years that I've been here!" He said looking anxious. "That's why I had to lie about how old I was and pretend I was much younger" Tom said while he let Leia slide back down the wall.

"You look beautiful with red eyes" Tom whispered into Leia's ear as she stood staring up at him. She chuckled and stepped round him, having gained strength again, and tugged his hand towards the door. "Come on. I want to try out playing the flute without having to breathe!" She said excitedly.

She could now play Chanson Baladée perfectly, because she no longer needed to breathe, to Toms delight…

Two weeks had passed and it was finally time for a change of scenery. Aleida packed a case for the four weeks she was staying at Toms. Her eyes had finally started to fade from the bright red that they had been and into a brownish red with a hint of blue starting to show though. The walk from her house to Toms was the first time that she would have been outside for two weeks as she couldn't let people see her with red eyes! "Won't people still be suspicious if they see me with red…ish eyes still?" She asked Tom wondering how she was going to get away with it. "You'll have to wear your cloak with the hood on over your eyes" Tom replied whilst helping to put bits in Leia's case and packing his own stuff at the same time. Leia 'ooooh'ed' quietly and went to get her cloak out of her wardrobe.

Over the two weeks Leia had had to stay upstairs or in her or Tom's room as Ada and Rachel were downstairs. Its not that she didn't trust them, she just didn't want them worrying. Tom had told them that she was ill so he could bring her food up without seeming suspicious. Aleida felt guilty about not saying goodbye to them both as they had a four week break from their job as nobody would be in the house. They left after breakfast that morning and had shouted up the stairs a goodbye to Aleida and she had only been able to shout back down. She put her cloak on and picked up her case with ease. It probably would have been heavy if she wasn't a vampire! Tom turned to her with his case in hand and kissed her nose. "Excited to be getting out of the house?!" He asked looking excited himself. "As long as you have bread" Leia replied smirking at him. Tom rolled his eyes and laughed. "You and your bread Leia" He muttered to himself.

They carried their cases downstairs to the front door and Tom rummaged around in his many pockets to try and find the keys to his house while Aleida put her hood up and ensured that it was fully over her face or eyes at least. She just hoped that nobody she knew would spot her and try to talk to her. Tom finally stopped rummaging after finding his keys and straightened his clothes, jingling his keys in front of Aleida's face, under her hood, teasing her. She laughed and Tom could only see the bottom half of her face smiling unfortunately. "Ready? Got everything?" He asked with his hand on the door handle.

"Yep" Leia replied, playing with her new necklace that Tom had put on her while she was unconscious, apparently. Tom swung the door open and stepped out with Aleida following straight behind. She kept her head down and pulled her hood further down, feeling paranoid. "Your fine" Tom said reassuring her and offering her his arm. She looped her arm through his and they both started walking down the street to Tom's house.

The walk felt like hours where it was only about fine minutes. By the time they reached the front door of the house only one person had approached them and had, luckily, only been interested in talking to Tom. As soon as Tom had unlocked the door Aleida hurried in, relieved that nobody had seen her eyes or paler skin. She was just frightened that if someone saw her eyes they would instantly accuse Tom of being a vampire and kill them both. She really didn't want to get Tom killed! Leia leant back against the wall of the hall with her head back against it in relief. Tom came over to her, after running up the stairs and putting their cases in his room, and leant against her with their foreheads together. "We could have waited a few more weeks to move if you were that worried about it" He said seeing the relief on her face. "No, its fine. I really wanted a change of house!" Leia replied kissing him then sliding out from between him and the wall.

She unbuttoned her cloak and hung it up just as a tall man with short black hair came down the stairs. "Oscar!" She exclaimed as he grinned at her and came over to greet her. She had completely forgotten that Oscar would be here! "Hello Miss Harris!" He replied patting her back as she hugged him. Oscar was Tom's butler that Aleida had gotten to know very well because of the amount of time she spent at Tom's. "Congratulations" He said looking at the both of them. Aleida gave him a questioning look.

"What for?" She asked looking at him suspiciously. "Well it seems that you are a new vampire" Oscar said smiling at her. Leia's eyes widened and her jaw dropped in shock. "You know?!" She said surprised as she looked from Oscar to Tom. "Of course he knows! He's been my butler for ten years so he noticed a few things about me, so I told him because I knew I could trust him" Tom said smirking at Aleida then nodding at Oscar. "Did you have a nice break Oscar?" Tom asked raising his eyebrows at him. "Yes thank you sir" He replied also nodding back at Tom. "That's good. We're just going upstairs to unpack some stuff" Tom said grabbing Leia's hand and heading towards the stairs. Oscar smiled at them then headed down the hall into the kitchen.

Once they had got into Toms room, unpacked and messed around, splashing water at each other from a bowl on the side, Leia went to change out of her damp clothes. She came back out in a cream dress with pink over the top. Tom was lounging on a chair that Aleida came and sat on as well. She laid back, with her head in Tom's lap, almost feeling exhausted already from the stress of that morning. 'If I could feel exhausted' she thought. She had always had trouble sleeping since she was little and nobody had ever figured out why, but since the morning she had become a vampire she had slept like a baby! Tom's presence probably helped as well. Not that either of them had to sleep anyway! They both dozed off until Oscar poked his head round the door telling them that their dinner was ready.

Another two days passed and Tom and Aleida had hardly done anything apart from laze around the house. They hadn't been able to go out still because of Leia's eyes which were almost a clear blue like Toms. When she woke up the next morning the red tint had completely cleared and instead were a crystal blue. They widened as she checked in a mirror, like she had most mornings since they turned red, to see if they had faded any more. "Tom, my eyes have cleared!" She called excitedly out to him. He, very ungracefully, rolled off the bed, stumbled over to the door and poked his head round to have a look. He smiled adoringly at her with crinkled eyes. "They're gorgeous" Tom whispered as he put his hands round her waist and pulled her back against him as he had the first time she had seen her red eyes.

"I can't believe all this has happened" Leia said raising her eyebrows and wrapping her hands round Toms that were laced together at the front of her waist. She smiled as he kissed her cheek gently then rested his chin on her shoulder. "Me either" He replied looking at her in the mirror. "I never thought any of this could have happened. I thought I was going to have to watch you walk down the aisle with some other man!" He said scrunching his nose at the thought. Aleida laughed at the thought of Tom being jealous of some non existent man and turned in his arms to look at him.

"There has only ever been you" She said beaming up at him. Tom looked down at her in surprise. "You've never taken an interest in anyone else?" He asked raising his eyebrows. Leia thought about it. "Not since I was nine no!" She answered smirking. "Oh" Tom said with wide eyes. "I'm flattered" He smirked down at her as he said it. 'He's actually blushing!' She thought to herself giggling. Tom looked at the floor smirking trying to hide his embarrassment from her. When the blush had gone he kissed her nose and released his hands from her waist so she could get changed. "Do you want to go out today as your eyes are a normal colour?" He asked as she walked out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom. "I'd love to!" Leia replied, relieved that she could finally go outside without being too worried.

"Are you ready?" Tom asked as he put his jacket on, ready to go out into the cold weather. "Uhhh" She replied, giving him a questioning look and pointed to her back. Tom looked and realised what was wrong. She couldn't reach the buttons on the back of her dress! He walked up behind her and did up the tiny buttons all the way down her back then kissed her bare shoulder and went to wait at the bedroom door for her. She quickly put her own coat on and followed Tom out of the door. He took her hand and they walked down the stairs, looking forward to finally being able to go outside. They said goodbye to Oscar who waved them off then closed the door behind them.

Aleida breathed in the fresh air as they walked down the street towards the market shops that she loved to go to. "ALEIDA!" Someone practically screamed from what sounded like miles away. Both Tom and Aleida looked round, in surprise, to see who had shouted her name. A young man with long brown hair was running towards them. When Aleida realised who it was she grinned and started to walk towards him. "Michael!" She exclaimed, pleased to see him. Michael was a childhood friend of Leia's who was a couple of years older than her and was always lively and pleased to see her. When he reached her, he picked her up and swung her round in a circle then put her down to hug her. Aleida laughed as he squeezed her then let go and stepped back to look at her. Tom looked a bit shocked and confused as to who he was so he stood next to Leia as Michael spoke to her. "Where have you been?!" Michael asked grinning at Leia and looked as if he was bouncing with energy.

"I've been busy! Mother and Father have gone to America for 3 months so I'm staying at Toms at the moment!" She answered turning to Tom to indicate who he was. "Thomas, this is Michael. I've known his since I was little" Aleida said introducing him. Tom smiled. "Nice to meet you" He said holding his hand out to shake. Michael shook, eagerly. "Oh, so this is Tom!" Michael said looking at him then to Leia. Aleida had told Michael quite a bit about Tom, over the years, because she knew she could trust him and he wouldn't tell anyone. This was the first time Michael had met him in person.

Michael smirked at Leia. "I've heard lots about you" He said turning to Tom as they released each others hands. Tom looked surprised. "Have you really?" He asked slowly turning his head to Leia and smirking at her. Aleida blushed and looked down smiling still. 'I'll have to meet up with him and tell him about me and Tom' she thought to herself. "How long have Catherine and Owen been gone then?" He asked Leia. Aleida looked at Tom with her eyes squinted, trying to work out how long they had been gone.

"This is the fifth week I think!" She answered looking surprised at how long passed already! "Yeah your right!" Tom said looking surprised as well. "Ten weeks left" he added looking at Aleida. Michael looked surprised. "Oh! I hadn't realised they had been gone for so long!" He said looking at the both of them. Leia nodded. "Where were you heading?" Michael asked. "We were just going into the market for bread probably" Tom answered smirking and shaking his head. "Ah yes Leia and her bread. I'll leave you to it then" Michael said winking at Aleida who rolled her eyes back at him. "We'll have to meet up Mike" She added as he pecked her cheek a kiss and shook Toms hand again. "Yeah defiantly!" He called as he waved and ran back to where he had come from.

"He was nice" Tom said as he took Leia's hand and continued walking. "Yeah he is nice" Leia replied, gazing around, thinking. "He didn't say anything about my eyes and skin!" She said, sounding surprised, as she had forgotten all about it! They obviously weren't as noticeable as she thought, to her relief.

"Yes, I had wondered if he would say anything" Tom said looking over at Leia and smiling at her. They continued around the market and bought some little bits and some bread, of course. Aleida had to admit that she had got a few strange glances which she hoped weren't about her eyes. She just hoped people didn't notice the change of eye colour or the fact that they were the same colour as Toms!

A week passed very quickly and, finally, a letter from Aleida's Mother and Father was brought up to their room by Oscar. "I have a letter for you Aleida" He said brightly, as he poked his head round the door, almost hitting Tom as he didn't realise he was standing there. "Sorry Sir" Oscar apologised as he smirked and handed the letter to him. "It's fine! Aren't you meant to be off today?" He asked, as he inspected the letter and walked over to give it to Aleida. "Yes I' am sir but I wasn't sure if you still wanted me here because of Aleida?" He asked. "No, no of course not! You have your day off, you deserve it!" Tom said patting Oscars shoulder. "Ok. Thank you sir" Oscar smiled, waved at Aleida then went back downstairs.

Tom turned back to Aleida who was sitting on the bed, reading her letter. "What does it say?" He asked as he sat down next to her. Leia smiled at her mothers writing then looked round at Tom. "She said that all is well and that she hopes we're having fun" She answered raising an eyebrow at Tom suggestively. "We certainly are having fun" He mumbled as Leia leaned into him and he bent his head down to kiss her. She hummed as he deepened the kiss and put her hands on the back of his neck; pulling him closer. Tom slowly leant Leia back so she was lying back on the bed and brought his leg over the other side of her waist so he was over the top of her, as he continued kissing her. He put his hands either side of her shoulders, to avoid flattening her, as she wrapped her arms around his neck to stop him from pulling back.

They were totally absorbed in each other when they heard a bang at the door. Tom pulled back slightly to look at Leia. "Oscar will get it" She mumbled and tried to pull him back down but he kept his head up so she couldn't continue kissing him. "Oscar isn't here" He said, sounding disappointed. Aleida shut her eyes and sighed as Tom carefully clambered over her and out of the room to answer the door. As she was listening to the mumble of voices from downstairs she got off the bed and went to a cabinet over the other side of the room to brush her hair, she couldn't stand it when it was tangled! Just as she was about to pick the brush up she heard the door shut downstairs and something that sounded like a gust of wind. She whirled round quickly before something crashed into her front and pinned her against the wall. Leia gasped in shock, as she felt lips on hers which took full advantage of her open lips to slip their tongue in. She opened her eyes wide to find it was only Ton who had ran, at 'Vampire Speed' as she called it, up the stairs.

She groaned into his mouth as he flattened his body against hers and put his hands on either side of her neck, so he could get a better angle. Tom unexpectedly grinded his hips into Leia's which then caused him to growl and leave her mouth to start a trail of kisses down her jaw and the side of her neck. Leia closed her eyes at the pleasure as he continued his kissing down to her shoulder and back up to where her shoulder met her neck, where he nipped then sucked a bruise onto her skin, which would probably fade after a couple of hours!. Aleida gasped loudly and threw her head back to the wall with a thud. Tom kissed his way back up her neck, sometimes nipping, and back to her mouth, which he also nipped, before kissing her again. He moved his hands from her hair, which he was gently pulling, down to her waist and round to her back to start undoing the tiny buttons on the back of her dress whilst still kissing her. Leia took this opportunity to weave her fingers into Toms hair and pull it slightly as he had just been doing to hers, as he continued to fumble with her buttons.

Tom pulled back from the kiss, as he managed to undo the last of the blasted buttons, and rested his forehead against Leia's. Despite not having to breathe, they were still panting as they looked at each other. Tom slowly pulled the dress down so it pooled on the floor and left Leia standing in just her under dress. She didn't wear corsets to his relief! He smirked at her as he looked down at her bare feet and how beautiful she looked with a flushed face. Without warning, he picked Leia up, bridal style, and carried her over to the bed; laying her in the middle. She looked up at him with a cheeky smile on her face as he climbed over the top of her once again and leant down to claim her mouth.

Aleida gripped Toms shoulders and wrapped her legs around his hips and with her new found vampire strength and speed she managed to straddle Tom. He spread his huge hands across her hips as she stared down at him. "You scared me" she spoke down to him, raising her eyebrows accusingly. Tom chuckled. "Sorry. I just couldn't stay away any longer than I had to" He whispered into her ear, which he bit gently, as she leaned down to kiss him and start to undo the buttons on his shirt, deciding he had too many clothes on. Tom decided that he needed to get his stupid trousers off as well; they were getting way too tight! Leia seemed to feel the hardness beneath her as well. She grinded her hips down onto Tom's which caused him to gasp and throw his head back onto the bed.

They continued on through the night, often screaming or shouting each others names. They just hoped the neighbours couldn't hear...


	4. Holmes & Watson

The next morning, Tom and Aleida woke up, having fell asleep for 3 hours, and turned their heads to look at each other. They stared at each other then burst out laughing and into one of their giggle fits, as they looked around at the mess they had made of the room throughout the night. The headboard of the bed was broken and a few of the wooden posts, holding up the mattress, had snapped. Clothes had been thrown on the floor, pillows strewn about the bed and one of the bed blankets had been ripped. The cabinet next to the bed had also toppled over, spilling its contents all over the floor. Their inhumanly strength must have got a bit out of control... Leia turned to Tom again.

"We broke the bed" She whispered, biting her lip and frowning. Tom laughed and bounced the bed a bit making it creek loudly and a loud crack came from the bottom of it which made the bed jolt. The leg of the bed breaking set Tom and Leia off laughing again until they cried. "We defiantly broke it!" Tom said as he wiped the tears off his face and chuckled again.

They stayed laying in the wonky, broken bed for a while. "I was just thinking... My parents will notice my eyes! I wouldn't know what to say if they asked!" Aleida spoke worriedly, frowning up at the ceiling then looking at Tom. "We'll just have to hope they don't notice. Michael didn't say anything did he?" Tom asked, trying to reassure her. "No he didn't, but they're my parents. They're bound to notice!" Leia said sounding panicked. Tom turned to look at her and saw the stress and panic on her face so he grabbed her hand to make her look at him. "If they do ask, we'll have to say something about the amount of time they've been away or the light. It'll be fine!" He said in a calm tone. "You had beautiful blue eyes anyway so they haven't changed that much. If you had green or brown eyes before, we'd defiantly be in trouble" Tom said with a smile. Leia seemed to agree and the panic drained from her face.

An hour passed and they were still lying in bed. Tom had leant over to Leia to kiss her when they heard the front door shut downstairs. They both jumped in shock and looked at each other with wide eyes. "It must be Oscar!" Tom said sounding startled. He leant over Aleida to pick his pocket watch off the desk, that hadn't been knocked over on the other side of the bed, to check the time. It was 7 o'clock telling Tom that it was Oscar arriving! Tom's eyes widened as he realised that if Oscar came upstairs, which he often did, he would see the mess the room was in, the broken bed and both Leia and himself with no clothes on! He cursed as he jumped out of the bed, pulling a sheet with him to wrap around his waist. Leia giggled as she watched him darting around the room, with just a sheet on, trying to straighten things up and pick the cabinet up! He also attempted to fix the bed leg, as it was the most visible damage to the bed, but the wood had splintered, making it impossible without new wood.

The sound of footsteps coming up the stairs made Tom's eyes widen even more as he realised he and Leia still had no clothes on which made Aleida laugh even harder at his panicked face and roll around the bed, holding her stomach. As the footsteps got closer to the door, Aleida laughed even more as she wrapped a sheet around her. Just as Tom was about to get back on the bed, the door opened slowly revealing Oscars face. He looked shocked then gave them both a weird look as Leia smiled and waved at him innocently and Tom stood next to the bed awkwardly, still in just a sheet. Oscar visibly tried to hold back a laugh as he looked at each of them. "Morning Sir, Aleida. I just wondered when you would like breakfast?" He asked, trying to sound normal and not on the verge of laughter. "In about half an hour would be great" Tom answered smiling politely. Oscar nodded back and backed out of the door, shutting it behind him. Just as he was closing it, his eyes were drawn to a broken bed leg. When the door was shut he grinned and shook his head, continuing down the stairs.

As Tom and Aleida listened to Oscar walking back down, Leia burst out laughing again, ripping the sheet from Tom's waist, leaving him completely naked. He closed his eyes, smiled and shook his head at her hysterical laughter. He leant onto the bed, kissed her nose then walked into the connecting bathroom to get some clothes on!

When he walked back in, with clothes on, Leia was brushing her hair with the sheet wrapped around her still. Tom walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. "What shall we do today?" He asked, having run out of ideas. "I have know idea! Let me get dressed then we can go downstairs" Leia replied as she turned in Tom's arms and smiled at him. Tom grunted.

"Can't you just stay in that?" He asked with a smirk, looking down at her sheet. Aleida laughed. "I would love to but I'm sure Oscar wouldn't appreciate it!" She said as she untangled herself from Tom's arms and walked to the bathroom. She walked back out a while later with a long silver dress on. Tom was sitting on the bed waiting for her to come down for breakfast with him. When Leia had sorted her hair, they made their way down for their breakfast.

Oscar smiled at them both as they sat down and he put plates of food down on the table. When the all the plates were on the table, Oscar put a newspaper down as well which caught Tom's eye. "What is it?" Leia asked as he picked it up and studied the headline. He was never really interested in the paper so it was unusual for Tom to read it. "Looks like a vampire attack" he said frowning at the small typing. "What?!" Aleida asked, leaning over to read as well. "I've learned over the years to spot all the signs of an attack and thats defiantly one!" Tom said frowning. He sighed as he continued reading.

"They've got Holmes on the case" Tom groaned and rubbed his eyes. Aleida gave him a funny look. "Who's Holmes?" She said, scrunching an eyebrow and went back to eating her breakfast, waiting for an answer. "Sherlock Holmes. He's a great detective who always gets to the bottom of his cases. He'll certainly get to the bottom of this one!" Tom sighed looking stressed. "That's all we need. Another exposure and more suspicion. Why must they kill around here?! Do they not learn?" Tom mumbled, sounding angry. "Well it is London. Everyone must come here, including vampires" Leia spoke up and Tom huffed back, continuing with his breakfast and cast the murder from his mind.

When they had finished they stayed sitting for a while. Aleida smirked to herself then turned to Tom. "I know what we can do today!" She said as he looked round in interest then saw her smirk. "What?" He asked suspiciously. "Get a new bed!" Leia replied grinning at him. Tom chuckled and nodded in agreement. "We'll defiantly have to do that at some point... And be a bit more careful next time" He said raising an eyebrow at Leia which made her blush and kiss his cheek. They decided not to go out that day and stay in for a very long flute lesson now that Leia couldn't run out of breath...

Yet another week went by and in that time Aleida and Tom had been to visit Leia's Aunt Elizabeth, went to the market just down their road a couple of times, and went on a two day trip from their street, in Bloomsbury, over to Leadenhall market and over the London Bridge to visit St Georges church. They stayed in a beautiful inn nearby the church overnight so they could continue on the next morning. They went over Westminster Bridge to see Westminster Abbey which Aleida was hugely impressed by. She loved seeing beautiful buildings and that defiantly was one to see! When they left they continued back up to Drury Lane which took them back to Tom's house. Aleida had loved getting out of the house and street. She had hardly been anywhere but Scotland Yard where her father worked which she loved going to because it was always exciting and all her fathers work partners were very friendly! But it wasn't anywhere new any more and she had never been further.

The day after Tom and Aleida arrived home there was a quick rap at the door which Oscar went to answer. They could hear the mumble of voices from the living room so Tom opened the door slightly to listen to who was at the door. "Sir!" Oscar called from the door, making Tom jump. He poked his head round the living room door to see Oscar facing him. "Mr Holmes is here to see you" Oscar said, sounding weary. Oscar knew what it would be about and he knew it was dangerous for Mr Holmes to be asking Tom and Leia questions about vampires! He looked at Tom apologetically as he walked to the door. Tom patted his shoulder as he continued. "Mr Holmes" Tom said as he approached him and held his hand out to shake. Rather than just him standing there another, slightly taller, man stood to his left with a cane in his hand. Mr Holmes shook his hand and let go quickly and seemed to be studying Tom with squinted eyes. The man to his left seemed to notice this and quickly leant round Mr Holmes to hold out his own hand to Tom.

"Dr Watson" He introduced himself with a polite smile."Could we come in Mr Hiddleston?" Tom shook and smiled back. "Yes of course!" He replied and moved back to let them both walk past and into the hall.

Tom led them down the hall and into the living room where Leia was sitting. She looked at him questionably as he sat down next to her and Mr Holmes and Dr Watson sat opposite them. "I'm John Watson, and this is Sherlock Holmes" John said to Aleida when he noticed her confusion. "Nice to meet you" She replied. 'That's why Toms so uneasy' Aleida thought to herself as she looked at the two men. "We're here about the murders that happened just down the street" Sherlock said as he stood and started to walk around the room slowly with his hands behind his back. "Murders? I thought there had only been one?" Tom said in surprise.

"No. Unfortunately, another occurred just yesterday on this street with no evidence at all. That's why we're questioning the inhabitants of the surrounding houses" Sherlock said quickly and turned round to face Tom and Leia. "Are you two related?" He randomly asked and approached them, looking at both of their eyes at a closer distance. "No. We're not" Tom answered with a confused look on his face. "You have the exact same eye colour" He stated as he squinted his eyes and drew back, continuing around the room. John shook his head at Sherlock's randomness and looked apologetically at them.

"You heard nothing at all last night? No screams or strange sounds?" John asked them, leaning forward as he looked at them. Leia shook her head, looking concerned and apologetic. "Sorry, but we haven't heard a thing. Do you have any idea who it could be?" Tom asked.

"No we don't unfortunately. All the victims have been drained of blood and there has been no sign of forced entry or fight. We just don't know what to think!" John said sounding fed up, as he stood. "It's as if vampires are roaming the streets!" He said jokingly. "You're sure there hasn't been anyone acting suspicious or any strange behaviour?" John asked as he headed towards the door of the living room with Sherlock following behind. Tom tried to look calm as his face drained at the mention of vampires. Leia noticed and answered for him so it didn't look suspicious.

"We're very sorry but we've been away the last two days! If we see anything we'll be sure to let you know" She said as Tom followed behind the two men. "Thank you both" John said as he looked back as the door was shutting behind him.

As soon as the door was shut, Tom leant back against it, pinching the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Aleida walked over to him and hugged him, tightly around the neck, which made him relax slightly and wrap his arms around her waist, pulling her against him. He sighed loudly as he rested his forehead against her shoulder and turned his head into her neck. "I don't like this" He whispered. Leia sighed as well. "It'll be fine" She whispered back, remembering how Mr Holmes had looked at them both and questioned about their matching eyes. "Everything ok Sir, Aleida?" Oscar asked behind them in concern. Tom lifted his head up to look at him. "Yeah. We're fine" He said and smiled slightly at him. Tom knew that Oscar was concerned because of the two men, especially Holmes, questioning them about their own kind. "I'll get you some lunch" Oscar said, trying to make them feel better, and nodded to Tom who had let Leia pull back and they both walked into the dining room to sit down.

Tom and Aleida went to bed early to try and forget the day's events. They found a good distraction soon enough…

The next morning Tom and Aleida woke up to an even more damaged bed… More of the wooden planks holding the mattress up were broken and so was another leg! "We're going to have to get a new, sturdier, bed today Leia!" Tom exclaimed as he inspected the bed and Aleida sat, giggling on it still. "Shall we go and look for one today?" She asked, smiling at him. "Yes, I think we should" Tom replied grinning back and leaning on the bed, carefully, to kiss her then start kissing down her neck. He gently kissed the bruise, which hadn't faded yet, that he had made on her collar bone the night before, when Oscar tapped on the door. Tom pulled back and looked at Leia who was smirking. "Sir?" Oscar called from the other side of the door when no answer came.

"Come in Oscar!" Tom called back. When he came in he gave them both a weird look when he saw the state of the bed. "Breakfast sir?" He asked, trying not to look at the bed. "Yes please Oscar. We're going out soon" Tom smiled and looked at Aleida who was holding back laughter, as usual. "Ok. Breakfast will be ten minutes then" Oscar said as he backed out of the room, still trying not to look at the bed too much.

When he had gone Leia started laughing as Tom blushed in embarrassment. "How embarrassing" He mumbled as he walked over to the bathroom to get dressed. As he came out he noticed Aleida was already dressed. She noticed his weird look. "I couldn't be bothered to wait for you to come out because you take so long!" She explained grinning at him. "I do not!" Tom exclaimed and looked round at her in mock offence. He walked over to her turned back and swooped her up bridal style, which made her cry out in surprise, and carried her down the stairs as he kissed her again. "Love you!" Leia said brightly, half way down the stairs, as she touched Tom's right cheek with her free hand. He leaned into her touch and kissed her hand. "Love you too" He replied with a smirk. He carried her down to the dining room and put her down in her seat just as Oscar came into the room to give them their food.

Once they had finished their breakfast they went out in search of a bed. After a 15 minute ride in a carriage they went into a couple of shops that sold beds. Half way round the first one Aleida felt a pair of arms go around her waist and a head rest on her shoulder… and Tom was in front of her so it couldn't be him! She panicked for a second then turned her head slowly and got a face full of long brown hair. Leia sighed in relief when she realised it was just Michael. "You scared me!" She exclaimed as she turned in his arms and hugged him back. He laughed and pulled back to look at her and kiss her cheek. "Sorry! Thought I'd surprise you!" Michael said with a big grin on his face.

"I haven't seen you in ages. Again!" He continued with a disapproving look. They usually saw each other quite often but since her parents had been away she had only seen him once! Aleida looked at him guiltily and tried to think of the last time that they had actually been out together. "I'm sorry! It's been a busy few weeks… Maybe we could arrange to go out?" She replied, feeling guilty that she had hardly spoken to him at all, considering that he was a close friend. Michael nodded and smiled. "Sounds good. Tomorrow ok?" He asked and Leia squinted her eyes in thought, trying to remember if her and Tom were doing anything the next day. She was just about to answer when Tom interrupted behind her, putting his hand on her waist and leaning round her.

"Michael!" He exclaimed, holding out his other hand in greeting and smiling at him. "Tom! Good to see you" Michael replied and shook Tom's hand. "I was just asking Aleida if she's free to come out with me tomorrow. I've hardy seen her!" Michael said with a smile as he let go of Tom's hand. Tom raised his eyebrows in thought. "Of course! Unless you had anything else planned?" Tom said looking down at her. Aleida shook her head. "Not that I know of" Leia said happily. "Great! I'll pick you up at twelve and we could go for lunch!" Michael said cheerily, winked at Leia and walked off with a wave. Aleida smiled and rolled her eyes. He'd always been a flirt!

When Tom and Aleida had walked round the rest of the first shop they went on to the second and chose a beautiful metal framed bed rather than a wooden one. They were told that it would be delivered to them in the next couple of days which made them smirk at each other and try to stop themselves laughing again. Their bed would be out of action for a few days! They made their way home and had lunch then collapsed on the sofa in the living room. "Are you sure it's ok to go out with Michael tomorrow?" Leia asked looking up at Tom who looked down at her confused.

"Of course it is! Why wouldn't it be?" he asked and she shrugged back. "I just wasn't sure that you'd want to spend the whole afternoon by yourself?" Leia said leaning into him. "No, it's worked perfectly actually!" He said, making Aleida look up and him in question which made him chuckle. "I just needed to go out and look for some stuff" Tom said innocently. Leia looked suspicious. "What stuff?" She asked, squinting her eyes at him. "Just stuff for the house. And maybe a new hat" Tom said, smirking. Aleida scoffed. "As if you don't already have enough hats!" She said as she looked at two of his hats on the table in the middle of the room. He had many, many more upstairs!

"I probably wouldn't have gone tomorrow as I didn't want to leave you by yourself. So it's worked perfectly!" Tom said again. "Couldn't I have just come with you?" Aleida asked, confused again. "It would have been very boring for you. And I might want to surprise you!" He whispered into her ear, nipping it gently. Leia squealed and shrunk into the sofa which made Tom giggle. "So you'll be alright shopping for hats by yourself then?" She asked, smirking at him. "Yes" Tom replied, kissed her and picked her up to carry her upstairs as he had that morning.

************************************************************************************************************************************************

Aleida and Tom got up and dressed ready for Michael to come and meet Leia at the house. They sat waiting for him to arrive in the living room and to Aleida's surprise; a knock came at the door at 12:05! "Wow. Only five minutes late!" Leia exclaimed as she jumped up to get the door. "He's normally about an hour late!" She added as she swung open the door. Michael stood with his hands in his pockets and a grin on his face, as usual. "Ready?" He asked. Aleida looked behind her to see if Tom was ready as well. He was leaving at the same time and getting a carriage to some shops. Tom was standing in the living room door way smirking at her. He indicated for her to come over to him so she turned back to Michael quickly.

"Hang on" She said and walked back to the living room quickly. "What's wro-" Aleida started, before she was pushed against the wall and kissed thoroughly by Tom. Leia ran her hands through his hair and all too quickly he had pulled back and rested his forehead against Leia's. "Be careful" He whispered, and Aleida nodded back. Tom smirked at her again and walked over to a table and picked up his hat, put it on then walked out the door towards Michael. Leia raised her smiled and shook her head in amazement as she walked back down the hall to the front door where Tom and Michael were talking.

When the three of them left the house and Tom got into a carriage, Aleida and Michael walked down the road to a little café called Button's to have lunch. "So what have you and Tom been up to then?" Michael asked Aleida after they had sat down and ordered. Leia blushed and looked down with a smirk. "I have something to tell you actually…" She replied, looking back up at Michael whose face twisted with amusement and leant forward on the table in interest. "What?" He whispered cheerily, a huge grin on his face still. Leia giggled and leant forward as well. "Umm. About two weeks in, I may have shouted at him and told him that I love him!" She said quickly, leaning back and smirking excitedly at Michael. His mouth opened in shock and he gasped. "What did he say?!" Aleida smiled at him. "Nothing for a while and I thought he hated me! Then he stormed over to me, pushed me against a wall and kissed me" She whispered as she blushed again. Michael looked even more shocked. "Turns out after all that time he loves me back!" Michael laughed and smiled at Leia in surprise.

"Congratulations" He whispered, looking at her through his eyelashes with a smirk on his face. He leant back as their food was set down on the table. "Thank you" Aleida said sounding relieved and happy that she had finally told Michael. "I thought he was acting a bit strange!" Michael added. Aleida have him a weird look. "What do you mean 'strange'?" She asked looking at him with squinted eyes. "Like when I saw you both in the shop the other day. He had his arm around your waist and I just thought it was a bit weird up until now!" Michael laughed which made Aleida blush.

"So what is Tom doing today?" Michael asked around a mouthful of food. Aleida frowned at him as she swallowed some of her own food. "He said he's going to get some stuff for the house and a new hat" Leia said sounding confused and shrugging her shoulders. Michael squinted at her. "What's wrong with that?" He asked as he shoved more food into his mouth and Aleida shook her head. "Nothing really. He just sounded a bit unsure and nervous!" She answered, picking at her food. "Nervous? Why would he be nervous about shopping?" Michael continued as Aleida shrugged again. "That's just why I was a bit confused and suspicious!" She added as Michael nodded. "I'm sure its nothing. He probably just wants a new hat" He reassured her which made her snort and put her hand over her mouth. "He has hundreds of hats!" Aleida exclaimed which made Michael laugh loudly.

After finishing their main lunch, Michael got some kind of strange cheese. "What even is that?" Aleida asked scrunching her nose at the cheese. Michael looked down at his cheese before answering her. "It's like a kind of cheese that tastes a bit like Apple Pie which couldn't get any better really!" Michael answered, sounding overjoyed with his special cheese. "Want some?" He added, offering Leia a bit. "As wonderful as it sounds, no thanks" She answered, smirking at Michael as he shrugged and stuffed it in his mouth instead.

Once they had finished and paved for their lunch they set off back up the street and to Michael's parent's house as they hadn't seen Aleida in a while and they loved seeing her. Tom, meanwhile, was just on his way back home after a few hours shopping, after having made a difficult decision between two hats and a few of another something that he would have to keep secret until he found the right moment! He was buzzing with excitement as he sat in the carriage, getting comfortable for the long-ish journey back home. Tom had gone a bit further than he had told Aleida he was going because he just couldn't find the right shop with the right stuff in. Staring out the window of the carriage, he daydreamed until he suddenly saw the front of his house in front of him. He grabbed his bag, containing a new hat, some stuff for Leia and the house, and hopped out of the carriage spotting Aleida walked down the street towards him. Tom smiled and held his arms out for a hug as she got closer. Aleida grinned back at him and walked into his arms, chuckling at him.

"Did you get anything interesting?" Leia said curiously, peering at the bag in his hand. Tom smirked and grabbed her hand pulling her to the front door and unlocking it. "New hat?" Leia asked, smirking at him when he looked round at her, once he unlocked the door and stepped aside to let her in first. "I did actually yes! I couldn't resist" Tom said as he pulled the box from his bag and showed Aleida, who laughed at the addition to his collection. "That's it. I'm going to count your hats!" Aleida exclaimed as she darted from the living room and towards the stairs. Tom laughed loudly and quickly jumped up chasing after her. Once Aleida had successfully got away from Tom, she started to count his hats. She was halfway through when someone knocked at the door. It turned out to be their bed being delivered already! Leia left Tom, Oscar and some of the delivery men to carry up the bed as she continued counting.

By the time they made it up the stairs she had finished counting 34 hats! 34! He had more hats than she had dresses! She told Tom just as he came through the door with one side of the metal frame, which made him laugh loudly and almost lose his grip on the heavy frame!


	5. Bridesmaids

The four weeks at Tom's had sped by and it was time to go back to Aleida's house for the last 3 and a half weeks. Tom packed his case, once again, and picked up his new hat on the way out whilst checking his pockets for something. Once he was satisfied that he had checked his pocket enough times, which started to make Aleida suspicious, they walked back up the street after saying goodbye to Oscar. When they stepped in the door of Aleida's house they were greeted by Ada and Rachel who hadn't seen Aleida in six weeks because she had been 'ill' two weeks before leaving for Tom's house, so they were excited to see her. Neither of them commented on Aleida's eyes or skin to her relief. Leia stayed downstairs talking to the both of them whilst Tom went upstairs and dumped his stuff in her room. When he came back down Leia was sitting in the Living room with a plate of bread. "Leia!" Tom said with a smirk and a disapproving look. She giggled as Tom tried to nick some of her bread off the plate, which she moved out of his reach. Tom rolled his eyes and laughed, collapsing on the sofa next to Aleida.

When Tom and Leia had both had dinner that evening they went up to Aleida's room and lounged around but Aleida seemed very quiet which made Tom suspicious. "Leia?" He asked, as he looked over to her, where she sat on the other side of the room. She was starting into space and snapped out of it when she heard Tom say her name. "Hmm?" She answered sounding bewildered. Tom got up and walked over to her and sat on his knees in front of the chair she was sitting on. "You ok?" He said quietly, as he looked up at her. Aleida sighed and leant forward to be closer to Toms face and rested her forehead against his.

"I just can't believe how quick all this has gone! My parents will be back soon! What are we going to do?!" She exclaimed, her voice starting to rise in volume and pitch. Tom could see the panic on her face as she pulled her head back and looked down at him waiting for an answer. He sighed and laced his fingers through hers. "Everything will be fine darling. We'll find a way. I promise you!" Tom reassured her, smiling slightly. Aleida's eyebrows furrowed as she continued looking at him. "But how? How am I going to tell them about us? I don't know how they'll react or what they'll do Tom!" She replied sounding even more worried than she had before. "I'm just worried about you" She added quietly, looking down at their hands.

Tom's heart hurt when she said that as he realised that she didn't care about what her parents might say or do to herself. He looked at her with a frown which softened as he reached up and touched her cheek. She leaned into his hand and noticed that he was smiling at her. "What?" She asked, looking at Tom suspiciously and leaning back slightly. "I've had an idea in mind actually. I've been thinking about it the last couple of days as well" He said with a smirk as he leant back completely. Leia gave him a weary look as he leaned in to kiss her suddenly then leaned back again and started searching through his pockets for something. He patted all of his pockets and grinned at her when he found whatever he was looking for. Leia had never seen him look so excited before and she had no clue what he was up to! "Ok. Close your eyes a second!" Tom said excitedly with no explanation. "Tom wha-?" Aleida started.

"Please" Tom begged with his puppy eyes on. Leia sighed at him and gave in, closing her eyes. 'How is closing my eyes going to help us?' She thought to herself as she listened to Tom shuffling about, in front of her still.

"Open" Tom said quietly. Aleida opened her eyes to see that Tom had stood up and was offering her his hands. She gave him a weary look again and took his hands, standing in front of him. He didn't look as excited as he had before she had closed her eyes but he looked nervous. Tom looked at her with nervous eyes and squeezed her hands. "I know we haven't been together long, but it certainly feels like we have" Tom started with a wink, which made Leia smile at him then look down at their feet in embarrassment. He let go of one of her hands and touched the underneath of her chin gently, making her look at him again. "But I love you and I always have… I don't ever want to leave you. Especially now" Tom said gesturing at her. Aleida smirked and nodded at him, understanding that the gesture was about her being a vampire now. "And I'm not just doing this because of your parents by the way. I was planning on doing this anyway" Tom added keeping hold of her right hand in his and his left slipping into his left side pocket. Aleida still looked at him confused, not knowing where this was going. Tom grinned and slowly sank down on one knee, still holding her hand, and pulling a little open box out of his pocket to show her.

"Would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" Tom asked with a huge grin on his face. Aleida's eyes widened in shock and her jaw fell as she looked down at him. Tears started to well in her eyes and she smiled at him adoringly. It was a yes obviously but she couldn't get any words out so she nodded eagerly and got down on her knees as well and wrapped her arms round his neck. Tom seemed to understand that she was shocked speechless as he wound his arms about her waist tightly, laughing slightly in relief.

"Of course I'll marry you!" Leia whispered into his ear a couple of minutes later, having sorted her brain out. "I love you" She added. Tom turned his head to kiss her cheek pulled away to look at her. They smirked at each other, then Tom realised he had the little box, containing Leia's ring, in his hand still. "Your ring. Do you want to wear it?" He asked showing her the box again. Aleida looked at the ring for the first time as she hadn't been looking at the box; she had been looking at Tom. She gasped again when she saw it. It was a carved, gold ring with tiny diamonds surrounding a blue diamond at the centre. She looked up at Tom again. "Of course I want to wear it! Why wouldn't I?" Leia asked in surprise. "I just wasn't sure if you'd want people knowing straight away" Tom replied with a smile as he took the ring out of its box and slipped it onto Leia's ring finger. They both smiled down at her hand.

Aleida suddenly launched herself into Tom's arms causing them both to tumble backwards onto the floor. "Thank you" She whispered. After another half an hour on the floor, they got changed and collapsed into Leia's bed. Tom felt relieved that he had finally asked Aleida to marry him after weeks of stress and worry that she would say no or she would find the ring! He just hoped that Catherine and Owen would be happy for them… He felt sure that they would be though!

Aleida still couldn't believe she was engaged to Tom two days after he proposed to her! She would forget then look at her hand to see her beautiful ring and would be overcome with happiness, excitement and nerves. They hadn't told anyone yet as they wanted to wait until Owen and Catherine got home in two and a bit weeks time. Leia wasn't worried about her parents noticing her eyes or anything like that any more, she was more worried about how they would react to her and Tom's engagement. She just didn't know what they would do but, surely, they would accept it as Tom's a family friend!

Aleida sat day dreaming and thinking about everything when Tom walked in the room and she snapped out of it. She looked up at him to see he looked flustered. "What's wrong?" Leia asked standing up in front of him, taking his hands. "We just got a letter from the port. Your parents' boat is expected to arrive as early as the day after tomorrow!" He said with a nervous tone to his voice. "The boat travelled quicker than they expected it to, cutting their journey down by two weeks" Tom added, squeezing Leia's hands as she looked at him in shock and sadness.

Not that Aleida was sad that her parents were coming home. She knew that her and Tom wouldn't be living together any more and they wouldn't see each other as much. Tom noticed the sadness in her eyes and turned her head round to look at him, with his hand and leaned in. "As soon as we're married, you can move in with me!" Tom whispered into her ear with a smirk. Aleida smirked as well and wrapped her arms round his neck. "We'd better get planning then because I won't be able to wait too long!" Leia laughed into his neck. Tom chuckled and picked Leia up and started towards the stairs. "What's to plan? We could get married a week after your parents get home to give them time to settle back in" Tom said excitedly, clearly anticipating becoming a husband.

Aleida thought about it as Tom carried her up the stairs. "I don't think we should have anything big with too many people..." Tom nodded in agreement, not wanting too much attention on the both of them. "But we've still got best man, bridesmaids possibly, dresses, suits, guests and somewhere to actually get married to worry about!" Aleida added sounding excited as well even with so much to do and arrange.

Tom grunted in response. "Well... Best man will be Oscar if he accepts, Bridesmaids are up to you, dress you can get in the next few days if all is well when your parents find out, Suits I can arrange as well, All your close family and friends are local so that's not a problem and there's the church just down the street!" Tom said quickly in one long sentence and grinned at her widely. Leia thought a minute then turned and grinned back at him. "We could walk down to the church tomorrow and see when they can do it!" She suggested as Tom put her down at her bedroom door and walked in behind her. "Perfect" He whispered, winding his long arms round her waist from behind.

"Do you no who your going to ask to be bridesmaids?" Tom asked curiously, still standing behind Leia who was holding his hands that were laced on her stomach. "Well I don't really have many close girl friends so I was thinking of asking Ada and Rachel! We've been good friends since I was little and they'll be so excited" Aleida said with a smile as she imagined their reactions. Tom smiled and tightened his arms around her waist. "Yeah. That'll be nice. Just them two?" He asked quietly with his eyes closed and chin rested on Leia's shoulder. "I think so. It'll be nice with just the two of them" Aleida replied. She felt Tom nod on her shoulder and turned her head to kiss his cheek. He smiled softly and opened an eye slightly to look at her. "Do you want to sleep?" Aleida asked, turning in his arms so she could see him properly. Tom nodded. Once they got changed he dragged Leia into bed with him, curling around her and fell asleep.

The next morning they got up and dressed to walk to the little church down the street. They just hadn't decided whether they were going to save a date or not yet. Nobody knew about their engagement, but they decided that if they saved a date at the church, they would ask Ada, Rachel and Oscar to be bridesmaids and best man. They ate their breakfast then left the house and strolled down the street, excited about booking their wedding, possibly.

As they approached the church, Leia realised how perfect it was for a wedding. She had never been there very much as a child so she never realised how beautiful it was. It was a small stone building with a tall spire on the right hand side. There were blossom trees on either side of the tall wooden door, giving it colour.

Before they went through the door, a sudden thought struck Aleida. "Are you sure you want to get married in a church?" She asked Tom, pulling his arm. "Us being ... Different and all" She added in hesitation. Tom turned and smiled at her touching her cheek with a chuckle.

"Churches have never bothered me. As long as they never know they'll never bother us" He said quietly with a smile. "As long as you feel comfortable becoming my wife in here, I'm fine with it" Tom added and Leia nodded in reply as he took her hand and they continued through the door. They saw the father at the end of the long church, arranging some books on a shelf and stayed where they were for a few seconds.

"Do you want to stay here while I go and talk to him?" Tom whispered. Aleida nodded in agreement and sat down on one of the long pews. She felt nervous and didn't want to put the father off giving them a date for their wedding. Tom leaned down and kissed Aleida quickly before walking over to where the father was standing, with a quick glance over his shoulder at her. He was smirking, of course. Leia smiled and shook her head, looking around the beautiful church. It was perfect for the small wedding that they wanted, she just hoped the father wouldn't find their age difference strange.

Her attention was averted from the glass windows when she heard Toms voice echo around the church. Leia watched him talk for a couple of minutes before he started pointing and turning towards her, showing her to the father who smiled at her and nodded to her relief. Tom then shook the fathers hand and walked back towards Aleida looking overjoyed. She smiled at him as he took her hand and walked back towards the wooden doors.

Aleida looked back at the father before walking out, and he waved at her with a smile. She politely smiled back and waved, stepping out of the door.

Tom and Leia walked out of the shaded church grounds and back onto the sunny street. Aleida looked at Tom excitedly and squeezed his hand. He beamed down at her and pulled her against his side, resting his hand at her waist. "He said that he'll happily marry us! And he saved us a date for late next week that we can confirm tomorrow! I explained our situation" He said quietly, leaning his head down slightly. Leia grinned at him with excitement and moved away from him slightly to hug him. There was nobody around to gawk at them so Tom returned the hug and kissed her cheek.

Once they had got back to the house, they decided to tell Oscar, Rachel and Ada. Tom left the house again to go to Oscar's house to ask him to be best man and Aleida went to Ada and Rachel. She stepped into the bright kitchen, where they spent most of their time, almost bouncing with excitement. "Aleida?" She heard someone say from around the corner. Leia peered round to see who it was. "There you are!" She said excitedly when she saw Ada and Rachel sitting at a wooden table with lots of vegetables that they were peeling, and went to sit down opposite them.

"Are you alright? You look as if your about to explode!" Ada said curiously with a smile. Ada was younger and more curious than Rachel but they were both in their early twenties. Aleida grinned at them both before answering, trying to contain herself. "I'm fine, just excited. I've got something to tell you!" She explained as she watched both their faces become more curious. "A while ago now, umm..." She paused, smirking at them. "Thomas may have told me that he loves me and stuff happened!" She said quickly. Both Ada and Rachel's jaws dropped simultaneously. "Stuff?!" They exclaimed together. "Yeah! And he...umm" Leia hesitated again. "Proposed to me yesterday" Aleida added. They both stared at her for a few seconds before squealing and clambering round the table to hug Leia, shouting their congratulations.

Ada and Rachel finally let go and sat back down in their seats. "How long?" Rachel asked with a smirk as she still looked at Leia in amazement.

"How long what?" Aleida answered with a smile. "How long have you two been together?!" She exclaimed. Ada started giggling at this point which set Leia and Rachel off. "About four months!" Leia managed through her giggles.

"Four months?! And you never told us! I knew there was something going on" Rachel replied with mock betrayal. "Did he propose with a ring?" Ada asked curiously. Aleida nodded in reply and looked down at her ring. She brought her hand out from under the table and laid it on top so they could see the ring. Ada and Rachel gasped as they lent over the table to get a better view. "It's gorgeous!" Ada whispered as she peered up at Leia.

"My parents don't know yet" Aleida mumbled as she chewed on her bottom lip while the girls studied her ring. "Right" Rachel replied, looking slightly nervous as she lent back. She didn't know how Catherine and Owen would react to this but she hoped they were happy for them; she certainly was! "Me and Tom went to the church down the road today and saved a date for late next week. We've got to let the father know whether it's going ahead or not tomorrow as my parents come home tomorrow!" Leia added, looking and sounding nervous as well.

"I'm sure it'll be fine!" Ada said reassuringly, squeezing her hand. Aleida smiled at her gratefully before adding "So don't tell anyone yet. And I came to ask you both something as well" They both frowned at her in confusion before saying "What?" at the same time. Aleida suddenly looked excited again. "Presuming all goes well with my parents tomorrow, Tom and I will be getting married next week. And I was wondering if you would both like to, umm..." She paused, looking up at their faces. "Be my bridesmaids?"

After what seemed like hours of squealing and hugging and the word 'Yes' repeated quite a few times, Rachel and Ada knelt down next to Aleida's chair, each holding one of Leia's hands. "Are you sure?" Ada asked as she looked up at Aleida smiling. "Of course I'm sure! Why wouldn't I want you as my bridesmaids?" Leia asked, amazed at her question. "I don't know... I've just never heard of anyone asking their maids to be their bridesmaids as well!" Ada answered with a grin as she looked at Rachel excitedly.

"Well I wouldn't want anyone else as my bridesmaids! And as I said, if all goes well with my parents tomorrow, we can go and look for something for us all to wear with my mother!" Aleida said, squeezing their hands in excitement. "I'm so excited!" Rachel exclaimed as she jumped off the floor and back into her seat. Leia nodded in agreement. "Oh, Tom's just gone to Oscar's house to ask him to be best man!" Aleida said, just remembering where Tom actually was. She then noticed that Ada had turned her head quickly at the mention of Oscar. "Oscar Adams?" She asked with wide eyes. Rachel started laughing at the blush that crept onto Ada's face. "She has a bit of a fancy for Oscar!" Rachel said, leaning over the table and patting Ada's head. "I do not!" Ada exclaimed as she tried to swat Rachel's hand away. "Aww!" Aleida exclaimed as she smiled at Ada. Rachel started giggling at this which set the other two off again.

When Tom walked into the house, after a successful trip at Oscar's, all he could hear was giggling, coming from somewhere in the house. He walked all the way through the house, until he found where it was coming from and ended up in the kitchen to find all three of them in fits of laughter. "Ladies?" He asked confused, as he looked at each of them. They all looked round at him, not noticing him there at first, and continued to giggle.

"Tom!" Aleida said, pleased to see him. He smiled at her and went to stand behind her chair, putting his hands on her shoulders. "It was a yes then?" He asked Rachel and Ada, smiling at them. "Of course it's a yes! Congratulations!" Rachel exclaimed. "How could we possibly say no?" Ada added grinning back at him. Tom grinned wider at the both of them and squeezed Leia's shoulders. "It's good to hear!" He said. He leaned over Aleida's head to look at her. "Oscar said yes! He's very excited as well!" He said excitedly. Leia smirked at him before answering. "That's great; you should have invited him over" Aleida said whilst winking at Ada who smirked and looked at the floor. Tom nodded. "I did ask but he said he had other plans" He answered then leaned back.

"We've just got your parents to worry about tomorrow then after that it'll be fine" Tom said, now sat around the table with the others. They were discussing where they could get Suits, dresses, flowers, invites, food and drinks from. "Yes I know... If they overreact I may disown them" Aleida said with a smirk. "It'll be fine!" Ada, Rachel and Tom said at the same time which set them all of laughing again.

That night passed very slowly and the hours seemed to drag on forever. Aleida started to get frustrated which Tom could sense so suggested going to bed. Leia nodded sulkily, said goodnight to Ada and Rachel, then followed Tom up the wide staircase to her/their bedroom. Once they had both changed into night wear, they flopped into bed next to each other. Tom turned his head towards Aleida who was lying on her back, staring up at the ceiling. He could see how tense she was and could see the panic and worry rolling off of her.

"Ada seems to have made a bit of an impression on Oscar" Tom blurted out randomly, trying to distract Leia from her thoughts with some of his own. Aleida turned her head to look at him with her icy blue coloured eyes. "What?!" She asked, sounding shocked. Tom smirked, glad at having caught her attention. "When I'm home, Oscar brings Ada up. A lot. I think he may like her!" He said excitedly. Leia's jaw dropped as he spoke which made Tom chuckle. She closed her mouth after a minute of silence and grinned at him. "Well he's a lucky man. I found out that Ada likes him today!" It was Toms turn to look at Leia in surprise and returned her grin. "That's brilliant!" Tom added, obviously trying to think up a plan in his head. Aleida smirked at him. "We'll have to get them all together for wedding planning so we can do something then" She said as she kissed his cheek and snuggled into his side. Tom nodded and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer.

************************************************************************************************************************************************

The next morning, Aleida woke with a jolt and sat up quickly. It was still slightly dark because it was so early. It would be impossible to go back to sleep. She turned to look at Tom who was still asleep next to her. His bare chest was rising and falling slightly even though he didn't need to breathe. Aleida smiled fondly then sighed and rolled off the bed to go and get changed. When she had finished, she walked out to find Tom had disappeared from the bed. Looking around the bedroom, Leia strained her, now sensitive, ears to try to figure out where Tom was. But she couldn't hear anything... She saw a sudden flash of movement in the corner of her eye, but before she could spin round to look, there was a loud shout and the movement shot towards her. Aleida let out a short, but loud, scream before she realised it was just Tom, trying to make her jump.

"TOM!" She shouted as Tom threw his head back with laughter, trying to make his way towards her, where she had backed up against a wall. Leia swatted at Tom's chest with a smirk, at her own reaction, as he came into reach. "You scared me!" She exclaimed as she looked up at him, wide-eyed. "Sorry darling" Tom replied with a grin as he captured her lips gently, backing her up against the wall again. Aleida sighed into his kiss as she wrapped her arms round his neck, going up on her tip toes. Tom pulled back slightly to look at her again. "I'd better get changed. They'll be back soon" He said quietly, taking his hands from her waist, kissing her hand then going over to the bathroom. Leia nodded in understanding and went to sit on the bed.

As soon as Aleida sat, she started chewing her lip and twitching her foot nervously. "Stop twitching!" Tom called from the bathroom with a playful tone. Aleida smiled and rolled her eyes. "Idiot" She muttered, knowing Tom could hear her, even through the closed-door of the bathroom. He snorted with amusement which made Leia smirk again and curled up into a ball on the bed. The room was still dim as the curtains hadn't been drawn, but she preferred the dark anyway. When Tom came out, he stood in the doorway with an eyebrow raised at Aleida.

"Come on!" He exclaimed in an optimistic tone as he walked over to the bed. He stood next to where Aleida was lying and offered her his hands to help her up. "It's-" He paused to look at his little pocket watch as Leia uncurled herself. "Nine and your parents will back at ten apparently" He continued as he pulled Aleida up with little effort and held her in his arms. "Breakfast?" Tom whispered after a moment's silence. Leia grunted in response then laughed as Tom picked her up bridal style and carried her down the stairs.

Compared to the night before, the hour started to go very quickly. Aleida felt excited but scared. She had no idea how her parents were going to react. Ada and Rachel seemed nervous as well. Tom was being Tom and seemed perfectly fine apart from the occasional look of panic or deep thought when nobody was looking. They both sat in the living room next to each other, Tom with his arm around Leia who rested her head against his shoulder. They both heard the slam of a carriage door outside the house and looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Here we go!" Tom said with a small smile. He got up off the chair, holding onto Aleida's hand, and walked to the door with Leia following close behind. She squeezed his hand when they reached the front door and Tom turned towards her. He gently lifted her hand to his lips and squeezed his eyes shut as he kissed it. "It'll be fine. Act normal" Tom whispered, with a reassuring smile, after releasing her hand and leaning in to kiss her one last time. Aleida nodded as Tom turned towards the door. She could hear Owen and Catherine's voices approaching the door and she couldn't help but smile at their ridiculous conversations.

Tom swung open the door with a smile on his face as Catherine went to knock and she looked up in surprise. Her face brightened when she saw Tom standing at the door. "Thomas!" She exclaimed as she walked in to hug him tightly. "It's so good to see you!" Tom said brightly as he hugged her back and saw Owen struggling with suitcases over Catherine's shoulder which made him chuckle. "I'll go and help Owen" He said as he pulled back from Catherine, turned to look at Aleida with a reassuring smile then walked outside. Catherine turned as well and grinned widely at Aleida who flung herself into her arms. Catherine laughed as she hugged Leia tightly and kissed her head. She pulled back, and held both of Aleida's hands, to keep her at arm's length to look at her. "The ring! I didn't take my ring off!" Aleida panicked internally trying to keep a calm face as she smiled at her mother.

"I missed you so much!" She exclaimed as Aleida continued smiling at her. "I missed you too!" Aleida replied with a bigger grin and Catherine squeezed her hands with the excitement of being back. Leia watched as she frowned then looked down at their hands. She had felt the ring on her finger. Catherine gasped as she looked down at the blue crystal on top of the gold band that she had on her wedding finger. Aleida continued staring at her mother, he bottom lip between her teeth, waiting for what she was going to say.

"W-whats that?!" Catherine said, peering up at Aleida with a face full of shock still. "I'm-" Leia faltered as she looked down at her feet. "I um. Got engaged" She continued quickly in a tiny voice, shrinking back a little. Catherine's eyes got even wider somehow and her jaw dropped. "Who to?!" She asked in amazement. "Uh" Aleida sighed before looking out through the door to stare at Tom, who didn't seem to notice anything going on. She heard her mother gasp from the other side of her as she realised who she was engaged to.

Aleida turned her head slowly to see a smile growing on Catherine's face. She was full-out grinning when she made a high-pitched squeak and her eyes started to fill with tears. She pulled Aleida back into her arms tightly then stepped back and clapped her hands with delight. Leia looked at her with a horrified look. "I thought you'd be mad?!" She exclaimed as she watched Catherine wipe tears away. "Of course I'm not mad! My baby's engaged to one of the most polite and gorgeous men in town! How could I be mad!" Aleida laughed at what she'd said.

"I can't believe you just said that" She said quietly, turning to look at Tom again with a sigh of relief. "Well, he is! It's just your father you've got to worry about" Catherine said with a worried tone to her voice. Aleida looked at her with a frightened face which made Catherine chuckle. "We'll win him round. I promise" She added reassuringly as Owen and Tom walked up to the front door with the cases.


	6. Nerves

The evening seemed to flow quite nicely, considering how nervous everyone was about Owen finding out about Aleida and Toms engagement. He had eventually found out when they were sat down for dinner with Tom next to Aleida and Owen and Catherine opposite them. If Aleida's heart could still beat, it would have been beating rather painfully fast. "Father" She eventually spoke up after a long debate about something or other between the four of them. "Yes darling?" Owen said, looking up from his food cheerfully. His gaze seemed to hesitate on her eyes for a couple of seconds. "I must say, your eyes look beautiful having not seen them for a few months!" Leia's eyes widened for a second before blinking a few times.

"Oh. Thanks?" She mumbled, looking down, trying not to make it look like a big deal. She could see Tom, in the corner of her eye, shift uncomfortably next to her. "Anyway, you were saying?" Owen added happily. "Oh yes um, I have to tell you something" She tried to say confidently. Starting to chew her lip nervously, she looked over at her mother who gave her an encouraging look, then over to Tom who held her right hand reassuringly under the table. Owen was looking at her curiously when she looked back at him. "While you and mother were away, I got engaged father" Aleida blurted quickly and then cringed back, still looking at her father.

After a long pause, Owen seemed to realize what Leia had just said. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, about to say something, but no words came out. He gawked at the three of them in turn. They all flinched when he looked at them, not sure what he might say.

"Oh" Owen finally managed to choke out as he looked back at Aleida. She looked at him worriedly, brows furrowing as his eyes flickered down to her left hand which rested on the table, ring now on show. "To whom?!" He squeaked in disbelief looking round at Catherine questioningly. Aleida sighed slightly in relief. 'At least he's curious and not going on a rampage' she thought to herself and chanced a quick glance at Tom who nodded at her slightly.

"That would be me" Tom spoke up as he straightened his back in his chair and sent a small smile Owen's way. If possible, Owen looked even more stunned as he looked over at Toms nervous face.

After a short silent moment, Tom added hastily "I honestly would have asked you first if you had been here Owen" He looked down feeling guilty about not having asked first as he should of done. Aleida squeezed his hand reassuringly and Tom looked up at her with a slight smile then back at Owens still shocked face. "I had found the ring and the right moment came so I just…" He broke off looking at both Catherine then Owen again. "I really love your daughter. And I'll be the proudest, luckiest husband. If you'll allow it?" He added with a slight blush. A small noise came from Catherine and they all looked at her in surprise. Her eyes had welled up and a tear ran down her cheek as she looked at Tom adoringly who smirked back at her slightly.

"You knew about this?" Owen asked with a serious look on his face and a shocked tone still in his voice. "Only since this morning Owen" She replied, wiping the tear from her face and turning to her husband with a grin on her face. Owen looked at her and after a few seconds, a smirk twisted his face and he turned back to Aleida and Tom. The smirk slowly grew into a grin like Catherine's, one eyebrow rose and he nodded slowly. "Congratulations" He said simply as he smiled at them both. "Of course I'll allow it!" Aleida, Tom and Catherine all visibly relaxed and sighed with relief which made Owen chuckle.

"Did you think I'd be angry?" He asked curiously, still grinning. "We never know with you, Father" Aleida laughed as she made her way around the table to hug him tightly. "I'm very happy for you. Both" Owen said into Aleidas hair then glanced over at Tom with a smile. "I couldn't think of anyone better for my daughter" He added, shaking Toms hand over the table, after Aleida had pulled away and sat back down. Catherine leaned over and kissed Owen on the cheek as Tom and Aleida beamed at each other. Ada and Rachel suddenly bustled in, took dinner plates and replaced them with dessert, sneaking looks at Tom and Aleidas bright faces which made them also smile in relief.

"I asked Ada and Rachel to be my bridesmaids Mother" Aleida exclaimed after the two maids had left the room, not wanting to embarrass them. "Oh that's lovely!" Catherine smiled back at her, clearly happy about the choice. "Will Oscar be your best man Tom?" Owen asked, having been fond of Oscar for a few years. "Yes, of course!" Tom replied with a grin. "I wouldn't have anyone else" He added. "We also walked down to the little church down the street yesterday to ask about dates for the wedding!" Aleida blurted excitedly, suddenly feeling nervous again. "That's a lovely place to get married! The father's very friendly as well" Owen managed to reply around a mouthful of cake and Catherine nodded in agreement with excitement in her eyes.

"Did he give you a date then?" She urged, looking at Tom and Leia excitedly. "He did! He said Thursday next week if we're ready which, I think we now are?" Tom replied, looking at Aleida questionably. She nodded back eagerly in reply. "As soon as Thursday?! We must get looking for dresses Aleida!" Catherine exclaimed, bouncing in her seat with joy. "We could go out tomorrow if you're not too tired?" Leia suggested, smiling at her mothers excitement. "Of course I won't be too tired to look for wedding dresses! How could I be?" Catherine exclaimed, looking at Aleida as if she was mad. Tom laughed at them both and squeezed Leias hand again. "We should head to bed in that case" Owen spoke up, patting Catherine's shoulder. "Or you defiantly will be tired" He added, giving her a sarcastic smile. Catherine rolled her eyes with a smile and nodded in agreement. "Is it alright if Tom stays tonight?" Aleida asked as Ada and Rachel came back in and cleared the plates and they all stood. "Of course!" Owen said joyfully as they all made their way to the stairs. Tom smiled at Leia in relief and reached for her hand as they walked up the stairs behind her parents.

Relief flooded over both of them as they got into bed. "Well. That went very well!" Tom murmured quietly to Leia who was curled up at his side with his arm around her. "Thank god" Aleida sighed, resting her head on his chest. "I can marry you now!" She added looking up at him with sparkling eyes. Tom huffed out a laugh and kissed her forehead gently. "I know" He whispered. "And I'm the luckiest man in London!" He continued gleefully which made Leia smirk as they fell asleep, finally not having to worry about her parents anymore.

Aleida woke the next morning and could already hear her mother bustling around in the kitchen with her sensitive hearing. She cocked her head to the side slightly, trying to catch what her father was saying. Something about being too early to be awake, which made Aleida chuckle softly. It was her fathers usual morning moan about the time Catherine likes to get up. "What's so funny?" Tom suddenly asked from above her in a gravely sleep voice, already sounding amused.

"Fathers moaning. He does it every morning" She replied, looking up at him with a smile. She felt his chest rumble with laughter under her head. "Well I can't blame him. It is early!" Tom mumbled quietly as he shifted his position onto his side so he could face Leia. "What time is it?" Tom shuffled over slightly to grab his pocket watch. "Seven" He replied as he snapped the cover shut and lay back on his side. Aleida groaned, snuggled into him and kissed his neck gently. "It is early" She moaned into Toms neck which made him laugh again. "Well you can't really complain! We don't even have to sleep and we don't get tired. Your poor father does!" He exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around her. This earned him a hard poke in the side. "Ha! Ouch!" Tom barked as he scrunched up his nose and poked her back.

"Hey!" Leia laughed as she withdrew from the circle of Toms arms to try and escape. She managed to jab him in the ribs a few times before he rolled them over, so he was on top, and managed to pin her arms above her head. He looked down at her, smirking, as she gave him a disapproving look. Aleidas face cracked into a smile as Tom kept smirking at her. They both laughed as Tom bent his neck down to kiss her.

A sudden knock came at the bedroom door. "Aleida?" Catherine called from the other side. Tom stiffened on top of Aleida and his eyes widened at the sudden intrusion, making Leia laugh again. "Are you awake?" Catherine continued, having not got an answer. Tom managed to get off the bed, grab his clothes and run to the bathroom in about two seconds, before she slowly opened the door. Aleida just about saw Toms smirk as he shut the bathroom door. Her mother poked her head round the door, having not seen Tom in the room at all, and smiled at Aleida.

"Oh good, you are! Are you still up for dress hunting today?" Catherine chimed with a grin. "Only just! It's seven in the morning! And yes of course I' am. Are you not too tired?" Aleida answered, trying to look sleepy and not wide awake; which she defiantly was. "Sorry. You know I can't sleep for very long, especially when I'm excited!" Catherine exclaimed. "You're father wondered if Tom, Oscar and himself wanted to go and look for suits today as well?" She added, suddenly realizing Tom wasn't in the room. "Sounds like a great idea!" Tom responded as he suddenly burst out of the bathroom door, surprising both Aleida and Catherine. "Good morning" He added politely, smiling at Catherine.

By the time they had messed about and eaten their breakfast, it was Nine O'clock. They all went outside, with Ada and Rachel, to get the carriages ready and wait for Oscar to come from Toms house and meet them. "Are we all going together?" Aleida asked as a carriage pulled up next to them. "The men can't see the dress yet!" Catherine blurted, looking at Leia as if she was mad. "Ahh yes, of course" Aleida realized and turned to smile at Tom. He pouted playfully at her which made her and Catherine laugh.

"You'll see it on Thursday!" She said as she put her hand on his cheek gently and pouted back at him. "Ah! Here's Oscar!" Rachel spoke up, elbowing Ada teasingly a few times, as Oscar came jogging up to them. Aleida leaned around Tom slightly to see him, and then looked round at Ada who chuckled slightly and blushed. She then shuffled a bit behind Rachel, looking down at her shoes. Oscar said hello to everyone and apologized for being late. Leia went up onto her tip toes to kiss Tom on the cheek as a goodbye and he blushed gently. They all split and clambered into their, now two, carriages. Aleida watched as Tom let Oscar and her father get in first and she rolled her eyes slightly. 'Always the polite one' She thought to herself. Tom looked round at the girls' carriage and waved them off as she carriage jolted to a start.

"What about this one!" Catherine called Aleida over to a dress that was hanging among hundreds more. "Err" Leia scrunched her nose up at the dress. "I don't think so mother..." She added with a chuckle. "We will find one eventually" Catherine sighed as she smiled over at Leia. "We need to find a style for the bridesmaids yet!" Aleida continued examining the dresses one by one, not liking too many of them, until she paused on one and gawked at it. "I-I think that's the one!" Exclaiming excitedly, Catherine walked over quickly. "Oh Aleida. That's beautiful!" Ada and Rachel came over from where they had been looking as well. "Try it on!" Rachel urged as soon as she saw it. "Yes! Come on, you'll know for certain then!" Catherine said excitedly, pulling Aleida towards a little curtained room.

Once Aleida was in the dress, she beamed at the full length mirror she was looking into. The dress was mostly silk but had long lace sleeves and more lace falling down the front of the floor length gown. Leia turned her back to the mirror to see the back which had a line of buttons from the top to the bottom and a long flooding train. "I love it" She grinned, looking over to her mother and bridesmaids. Catherine stood next to the mirror with tears in her eyes...again and Rachel and Ada nodded excitedly. "It'll need adjusting to fit you better, but it looks gorgeous on you!" The shop woman said from the doorway suddenly, unnoticed until she spoke. "Thank you" Aleida said gratefully, looking down at the dress. "Could you adjust it for me?" The woman nodded with a smile.

"Of course! I'm Gracie by the way. When's the big day?" Gracie walked over to a little table and grabbed a tape measure. "October 31st. Thursday!" Gracie stood next to Leia, who stood on a stool to get a better view of the dress. "I'd better get working then!" Gracie started to take the measurements she needed.

"Ok!" Gracie jumped up from her knees when she'd finished jotting down some numbers. "If you could let me take the dress, I should have it done by tomorrow as there aren't too many adjustments. And I'll drop it off if you like?" Aleida nodded in surprise. "Wow, you're quick! I'll write my address down!" She smiled. "Oh! We're also looking for some bridesmaid dresses" Stepping down from the stool carefully, Leia looked over at Gracie for suggestions. "There's a whole section of them over there! How many will you need? I should be able to do any adjustments in a few days" She replied, leading Catherine, Ada and Rachel over to the dresses as Aleida took hers off again.

"We need two and that's perfect. Thank you!" Leia called from the dressing room before stepping out and walking over to the dresses as well. "That one's lovely!" Ada and Rachel nodded in agreement as they continued studying the dress they had pulled out. "We love it!" Rachel grinned, looking back at Aleida. "Well I think this is the one then!" Leia laughed, turning to Grace. "Well wasn't that easy! It usually takes hours!" She smiled, pulling out an identical dress from the rail. "Would you try them on so I can note any adjustments?" Ada and Rachel nodded happily as they were each handed a dress.

Once the measuring process was repeated for both of them, they paid Grace, what Aleida thought, a very good price for three dresses. They went back to the carriage and headed back home. "I'd think the others are already home!" Aleida laughed before they stopped outside the house. Before they could open the front door themselves or even knock, Tom swooped it open, grinning. "How gorgeous did they look in their dresses?" He asked Catherine, as she walked past first. "Absolutely beautiful" Catherine smiled up at him before going to find Owen. Ada and Rachel scurried off into the house as well, just leaving Leia and Tom.

"Well?" He asked with a smirk. "Well what?" Tom chuckled and pulled her towards him gently. "You know what" He murmured against her cheek, making Leia giggle. "Well I found the dress if that's what you mean" She smiled as she was backed up against a wall. "I can't wait to see you in it!" Tom smirked again, cupping her pale face. They were suddenly interrupted by a knock at the door, making them both jolt.

"Didn't hear whoever that is coming!" Aleida nodded in agreement, heading for the door. "You distract me!" Tom teased, following her then stopping close behind. Leia scoffed as she swung the door open to reveal a grinning Michael. "Hello!" Aleida exclaimed surprised to see him. "How are you both? I haven't seen you for a while again!" Michael moved forward to kiss her cheek then leaned round to shake Tom's hand. "We're great thanks Michael" Tom smiled happily at him as he stepped back so Aleida could let him in. "Mother would love to see you" Leia smirked as she led them both into the living room where Catherine had found Owen.

"Michael!" Catherine exclaimed when he stepped into the room behind Aleida. "My goodness you've grown up!" She added as she hugged him tightly before holding him at arms length. "Have you heard the news?" Aleida laughed at this, having not even told Michael herself that she was engaged yet.

"I'm engaged Michael!" She exclaimed excitedly, catching his attention. Michael's eyes widened as he stared at Leia then looked over at Tom as his face cracked into a massive grin. "At long last! I wondered how long it would take!" Michael smirked, making Aleida laugh, as he kissed her cheek then turned and shook Tom's hand again. "When's the wedding then?! I love a wedding!" He added gleefully.

"Next week!" Catherine, Tom and Aleida all said at once, making them all smirk at each other. "As soon as that! I'd better get my suit cleaned!" He gushed as he hurried back to the door and waved at them all with a grin. "Bye Michael!" They all chorused. "He's a mad brain!" Tom exclaimed after a pause as he watched Michael practically leap past the front window. Leia snorted. "He's always been like it! He's lovely though" Tom nodded in agreement, collapsing back into an armchair opposite Owen who was reading the paper.

"What was all this business about attacks down the street?" Owen asked, still reading. Aleida saw Tom stiffen slightly. "Yes we heard about them. Mr Holmes and Dr Watson turned up to ask us some questions" Leia mentioned. "Really! They're serious then?" Owen asked, surprised. "Well of course they're serious father; they're murders!" Leia exclaimed as she sat next to Tom. "Well yes yes, but their blood was drained! Sound's like vampires to me!" Owen replied with a chuckle. Aleida looked round at Tom with an eyebrow raised as Tom looked round at her with the same expression, with the corners of his lips quirked down, looking slightly scared. Aleida rolled her eyes and shook her head slightly, indicating not to worry.

"So. Did you get up to anything interesting while we were away?" Owen asked as they all sat it the living room a few hours later. Tom and Leia looked at each other blankly, not remembering much other than things they couldn't tell Aleida's parents. Other than getting engaged, planning the wedding and shopping, not much really!" Leia replied cheerily. "Well we had to go bed shopping as mine collapsed somehow" Tom said inconspicuously making Leia choke then clear her throat in shock, trying not to look as if she was suggesting anything. "Yeah that was weird" She played along, watching Toms face as he struggled not to smile. "How strange! Did you not visit Aunt Elizabeth?" Catherine asked, looking away from her book. "Oh yes! Of course! She loved having us round." Aleida replied with a smile. "I bet she did. I bet she adored Tom as well!" Catherine smirked. Tom laughed and nodded enthusiastically. "You wait until she turns up at the wedding!" Aleida chuckled as Tom's face when he realized she would be there!

"I can't believe you told my parents about getting a new bed Thomas!" Aleida exclaimed quietly when they eventually got into bed after a few hours of catching up with her parents. Tom smothered his laugh so he didn't wake anyone else up. "I was only telling the truth! Plus I don't think they'd think we're capable of breaking a bed Leia!" He chuckled, poking her side suggestively. Leia snorted and squirmed out of his poking range, trying to bat his hand away. "But we are!" She laughed, poking him back. "True" He smirked, pulling Leia towards him until she was snuggled against him. He lent round and blew the little candle out, leaving them in the pitch black - not that it made a difference to them anyway - then closed his eyes.

As they were laying there, he smirked suddenly. "You wait until you hear what I've got to tell them tomorrow!" He murmured, trying not to laugh. This earned him an even harder poke in the stomach. "Oof", he blinked his eyes open as he heard Leia laugh quietly next to him.


	7. Stranger

Sunday 27th October (Next day)

Aleida decided to get up a lot earlier than she and Tom had been rising while her parents were away. She wasn't sure what time Gracie was going to turn up with the dresses and she had to be careful with Tom around to peep at them. He groaned as she managed to wiggle out of his arms to go and get dressed. Tom managed to grab her wrist before she jumped off the bed, pulling her back down. 

"What are you doing Leia?" He asked in a croaky voice. Leia laughed at his disorientated state and patted his cheek gently. 

"Go back to sleep. You don't need to get up yet." Whispering, she tried to get off the bed again but Tom held on to her. 

"Why are you awake then miss?" He smirked up sleepily, looking adorable. 

"The dresses are being dropped off today and I don't know when. So I need to be up and ready." Leia explained, pecking a kiss on his cheek. Tom hummed, rubbing a hand over his face then pouted. 

"The suits are being delivered today as well..."

"Does that mean you've got to be up as well then?" Aleida asked. 

"They won't be ready until this afternoon." He smirked again tiredly. 

"Go back to sleep then!" Leia chuckled, and then added "How can you even be this tired! You're a vampire!" Tom laughed at this, rolling onto his side and shutting his bright blue eyes again. 

"An old vampire!" He croaked, still smirking. Leia snorted. 

"You're not old" Tom raised his eyebrows, eyes still shut, as Leia slid off the bed and went to get dressed.

Aleida zipped back into the room - her parents weren't awake yet - a few minutes later to find Tom fast asleep again. She smiled and shook her head as she walked out the door again, almost walking straight into Ada. 

"Aleida!" She exclaimed in surprise, stepping back a bit. 

"Why are you up so early?" She added. 

"The dresses are being dropped off today and I'm not sure when!" Leia explained again with a smile. 

"Ohh yes of course! I can't wait to try them on again!" She exclaimed excitedly, being sure to keep her voice down. 

"Neither can I! We'll either have to send Tom home or lock him in a room somewhere!" Ada chuckled and nodded in agreement. 

"We can't risk him seeing the dresses! Especially yours! Would you like breakfast by the way? Rachel is in the kitchen if you do." She explained, waving cheerfully as she continued down the hall to one of the cupboards. Aleida went down the stairs at an abnormal speed, when she was out of Ada's sight, and into the kitchen to see Rachel. She liked to run about when she was excited; especially now that she could run about in a blur of speed to release some energy.

Rachel was pottering around in the kitchen when Leia walked in and turned around, surprised, when she heard the footsteps. 

"Good Morning!" Aleida chimed, almost skipping down the two steps down to the brick floor. 

"Are the dresses coming this early?" 

"How do you know I'm up for the dresses?!"

"Well... I can't think of any other reason why you'd be up this early! You haven't been up this early since before your parents went away!" Rachel giggled, turning back round to the sink she was washing things in. Aleida laughed at this and sat down at the wooden table opposite to where Rachel was standing. 

"Good point! I'm not sure what time they're coming so I got up early just in case." Rachel nodded in agreement. 

"Would you like breakfast?" She asked, drying her hands. Aleida thought for a minute. 

"I think I'm alright thank you. I'm not very hungry" She smiled and looked down at her ring, checking it was still there. 

"You've been eating very little recently Leia." Rachel mentioned casually. Aleida frowned, panicking for a minute. She didn't have to eat any more so she was eating a lot less... 

"Have I?" She mumbled. 

"Hmm" the small maid replied, sounding slightly concerned. Tom suddenly walked in, looking bleary eyed still, but saving her from answering to Rachel's concerns. She wondered if he'd heard where the conversation was going and decided to save her or he just strolled in at the perfect moment.

"Morning ladies." Tom smiled as he sat down next to Leia who raised her eyebrows at him. 

"Would you like breakfast Tom?" Rachel repeated her question. 

"I'm fine thank you Rachel. Bit early for me!" He replied, his voice still a bit croaky from sleep which made Aleida smirk. 

"Are we going to have to send you home or will you stay in a room and amuse yourself for a while when the dresses turn up?" She smirked at him again as one of his eyebrows rose in amusement. 

"I never thought you'd want me out of the house!" He teased, leaning towards her slightly. "Well if you don't want to stay away from me for so long you can just wait in my room!" Leia teased back, just as playfully. Tom laughed and leant back again. 

"I need to go back anyway for when the suits are dropped off." 

"Perfect! I don't want you peeking." Tom smirked, eyes crinkling at the sides slightly. 

"I wouldn't dare!" He exclaimed, leaning forward and kissing her gently before jumping up when the newspaper was dropped into the front door. Aleida scoffed and watched him walk back in, glued to the paper. His eyes flickered up to hers and back down again, looking slightly scared. Aleida frowned. 

"What is it?" She asked as Tom put down the paper in front of her. 

"Ohh. Not again." Leia whispered, reading the bold headline on the front page that read 'ANOTHER MURDER ON VAMPIRE STREET.' 

"Something's going on down this street. I don't like it." Tom whispered back anxiously, pinching the bridge of his nose. "But it's not us Tom. Nobody can do anything to us"

"But whoever is doing it is obviously like us. That's why we've got to worry. I don't know any other vampires around here." He drew his eyebrows together in thought. "Whoever it is, is trying to draw attention to themselves. And it's working." Continuing, he turned to Leia who looked back at him worryingly. 

"Is there anything we could do?' She suggested timidly, not keen on the idea. 

"Not unless we want to get caught as well..." He shook his head. 

"But the human police won't be able to do anything either!"

"You never know. Especially with Holmes and Watson on the case." Tom sighed, looking increasingly stressed. He paused for a minute, thinking, then reached for Leia's hand. "It's going to be fine. It'll blow over soon enough!" He said, suddenly sounding enthusiastic. 'I really hope so...' Aleida thought to herself.

*******************************************************************************

An hour later a knock came at the door and Aleida rushed to the front of the house. "Tom! Up or out!" She called as she rushed to the door. Tom laughed as he appeared out of nowhere and wrapped his arms around her waist before she opened the door. 

"Out unfortunately!" He whispered into her ear. Leia chuckled. 

"Let me check before I let you lose!" She grinned and pulled out of his arms. 

"Hi Gracie!" She exclaimed when she peered round the door to see. The dresses were in a dark packaging which would stop Tom seeing them. "You can come out, it's fine!" Opening the door wider to reveal Tom waiting on the other side. "Gracie this is Tom, my fiancé"

"It's a pleasure to meet you Tom!" Gracie stepped in to shake Tom's outstretched hand. 

"The pleasures all mine! I'd better be off. One of you ladies may kill me if I see even a thread of these dresses!" He turned to Aleida, leaning in to kiss her cheek. 

"I'll see you tonight." He murmured then, with a wink, turned and walked down the path to the road. 

"Come in, come in!" Aleida gestured. Gracie walked in with the bag of dresses and Leia led her into the living room where Catherine, Rachel and Ada were waiting. 

"Hello again!" She chimed, getting straight to it and taking the dresses out of their dark packaging. "Would you like to just try them on so we know that they fit nicely?" They all nodded eagerly, each taking their dress.

*******************************************************************************

"They're all perfect!" Catherine exclaimed, sitting on one of the chairs in the living room, watching Aleida, Rachel and Ada in their dresses. Gracie finished adjusting the fastenings on the back of Aleida's dress then stepped away, smiling at the perfect fit. 

"Thank you so much Gracie!" Leia beamed, looking down at the dress in awe as Catherine fussed over Ada and Rachel's dresses. 

"You're very welcome. You'll make a beautiful bride on Thursday-" Gracie was cut off by a knock at the front door. 

"If that's Tom! He's going to be in so much trouble!" Catherine chuckled at Aleida's fretting as she almost skipped to the front door. 

"It's ok!" She called from the hall. "It's just the veil being delivered!" Leia sighed with relief as her mother walked back into the room with a box in her hands. 

"Do you want to try it on now? Or wait until Thursday?" Catherine questioned, looking down at the box. Aleida pondered for a minute as Gracie packed up the few things she had brought with her. 

"I think I'll wait until Thursday. It'll look better on with my hair done up." She decided. 

"Would you like help taking the dress off? I'll show Catherine how to do it so you know what you're doing on Thursday." Leia nodded so Gracie started working on the laced-up fastening down the length of the back of the dress with Catherine watching intently next to her. Ada and Rachel had disappeared to change out of their dresses again and put them back in their protective bags until Thursday. 

*******************************************************************************

"Thank you for doing this at such short notice Gracie!" Aleida gushed as she led Gracie to the front door. Catherine had asked her to stay round for tea and lunch so it was getting dark and misty outside by the time she was leaving. 

"It was really no problem. I hope everything is perfect for you on Thursday and if you have any problems, please send for me!" Gracie waved with a smile as she walked up the path and away from the house. 

Just before Aleida shut the door, a tall shaggy haired figure appeared from the dark at the far end of the street, with a long black coat billowing behind him. Leia shivered then paused to watch him go by and frowned when he paused for a moment on the path outside the house. The stranger turned his head to face her, slowly, and Aleida gasped when she saw piercing blue eyes, identical to Tom's and her own. She froze, still standing in the doorway as she stared at his too pale skin, even paler than hers, and the dark shadows under his eyes, wanting to back into the house but finding she couldn't, in fear that any movement may cause some sort of reaction from the man as he started back at her coldly.

A door suddenly slammed a few houses down the street which made Aleida jerk. The man remained still, but turned and looked down the eerie street behind him, looking withdrawn, then faced the way he was originally walking and drifted past the house, Aleida's eyes following him until he was out of her view. Another quick pair of footsteps echoed in the street towards the house where Leia still stood in the doorway, staring at the opposite end of the street where the man had disappeared. 

"Aleida?" A voice called, making her jerk again, head snapping round in the direction of the voice. Tom was walking up the path towards her quickly, with a smile on his face which quickly faded as he took in her expression and pale - even more so than usual - face. "Leia?" Tom asked again quietly as he arrived in front of her, but again got no answer as she stood, scared stiff, meeting his gaze. "What's the matter? What's happened?!" Starting to panic, Tom gripped Aleida's shoulders, pushing her back gently until she stepped into the house which seemed to snap her out of her daze slightly. 

Closing the door behind him without looking away from her face, Tom let his hands slide down to Leia's elbows, pulling her closer to him, placing soft kisses over her face. "Hey. Are you hurt? Did somebody hurt you?" He blurted, sounding as scared as she felt, looking her up and down between them.

"No. No I'm fine, I'm fine Tom." Aleida finally spoke, putting her hands over her face and shaking her head slightly. 

"No you're not Leia you're shaking!" Aleida breathed out shakily at this, pulling her hands away. "What just happened?" Tom repeated himself, looking at her with his crystal blue eyes, exactly like the stranger's outside. 

"I-" Aleida paused. She could feel the panic starting to rise now. "What if he's the one murdering people in the street!" was all she could think. "I saw a man. Outside. He stopped outside the house. He- His eyes Tom, he was-" 

"It's ok, you're fine now. I'm here Aleida. You're safe." Tom worried over her, holding her elbows to keep her steady. 

"Come on, let's go upstairs." He took Leia's hands gently and pulled her towards and up the stairs and into her - or their - room and sat her on the bed. "Come on darling, tell me what happened." Aleida breathed in deeply then looked down at Tom who was on his knees in front of her, holding her hands in her lap and nodded. 

"Gracie had just left, and I was just about to close the door, then this man appeared out of nowhere, and he stopped outside the house and just...looked at me. And I couldn't move! Something just felt...wrong." Tom looked up at her as she spoke, his eyebrows drawing together. 

"Did he say anythi-" 

"He's eyes were the same as ours Tom." Aleida cut him off mid-sentence, and Tom's posture instantly stiffened at this. "And he was so pale. Paler than us." Tom let out a long breath. 

"Did he come anywhere near you?" Leia shook her head slowly. 

"No he just...stood there. And started at me until a door slammed down the street. It must have been you." She pondered, watching Tom's expressions, as she tried to regain control of her shaking. 

"What did he look like?" Squeezing Leia's hands, Tom looked as if he was dreading her answer. 

"He-he was wearing a long black coat, long black hair, he looked like he hadn't slept for years and he was so scary Tom. His eyes were so cold." Tom nodded, squeezing her hands again and leaning his head forward until it rested on top of their hands. 

"Do you know who it is?" Aleida's voice quavered. Tom shook his head in her lap. "I don't know. I can't know for sure until I've seen him Leia. It could be anyone!" He groaned. 

*******************************************************************************

After a long silence between them, Tom straightened his back and looked up at Aleida again. 

"As long as he didn't hurt you, Aleida. I would never have forgiven myself." He said timidly as he pulled himself up and onto the bed next to her as she shook her head. 

"It just shocked me Thomas. I was scared, I've never seen another vampire before. And he was nothing like you." She leant into his side and knocked his shoulder which made him half-smile. 

"We've got to be so careful now Aleida. It could be him behind all these 'vampire' killings." Leia nodded in agreement. "And I'd rather not ever leave you by yourself again." Laughing gently, Aleida rested her head on Tom's shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her waist. 

"I would completely agree with that if it wasn't the night before our wedding coming up next week." Tom sighed and smirked down at her. 

"I would much rather spend the night with you than away from you...four houses away or not!" Leia smirked right back. 

"I know, so would I. But it's supposed to be bad lack. Plus my mother would be horror struck by the thought!" Sighing again, Tom kissed her cheek gently. 

"I know, I know." He paused for a minute in thought. "I'm half tempted to ask Michael or someone to stay in the house with you that night." Leia's eyes widened at this before she threw her head back and laughed loudly while Tom rubbed up and down her back as he giggled next to her. 

"Michael! He wouldn't hurt a spider, let alone an extremely threatening looking vampire Thomas!" She managed to get out as she continued to laugh. 

"Ah. Maybe not Michael then!" Tom chuckled and squeezed her waist. 

"I'll be fine. If whoever it was wanted to do something, he would have done it earlier. Plus we have a few days to watch for him yet. Don't worry about it too much." She leaned in and kissed him gently then pulled back. "I need sleep. And possibly some bread." Tom rolled his eyes at that and tried not to smile. 

"Whatever you say Leia."


	8. A Wedding

Wednesday 30th October

After three days with no sign of the unknown vampire, Tom visibly started to relax again, whereas Aleida was the exact opposite. Pre-wedding nerves had set in and however much Tom tried to calm her down, nothing seemed to work...other than giving her something to read. 

Aleida woke up with a start on the day before the wedding, looking to her side to find a motionless Tom asleep, as usual, as the morning sun streamed in through the window. She sighed and lay back down again on her side, facing him. Eyes wandering over his pale face, a feather poking out of his pillow catching her eye. Smirking, she plucked it out carefully from above Tom's head and brought it down in front of her. Holding it close to Tom's face, Leia brushed the feather under his nose, trying not to laugh. A wide smirk suddenly grew on Tom's face, eyes still shut, as he continued to lay motionless.

"If you want to wake me up, you could poke me, or kiss me or something other than tickling me Leia." Tom drawled, voice croaky from sleep as he peeped at her through one open eye. Aleida just smiled at him innocently.

"But you were already awake." She pointed out in a whisper, continuing to smirk at him.

"How do you know?" Tom opened both blue eyes at this, looking over the pillow between them.

"Because you wake up every time I move now, let alone when I sit up." She sighed, pushing her fingers through his curls gently.

"I know. I can't help it. We still don't know who this vampire is and he could be the one behind the murders down the street. And if he is, he can get into houses very easily by the sounds of it! I'm paranoid Leia. If only I could just see him!" Aleida nodded in understanding and tugged at his curls softly.

"I told you not to worry." She said quietly. "If he had wanted something, he would have come the night I saw him. And surely he realised I was a vampire right? Why would he break into another vampire's house?" Leia continued, trying to ease his mind.

"I don't know. But if something did happen, I wouldn't forgive myself. I brought you into all this, so it's up to me to keep you safe." Grabbing the hand in his hair, he brought it down to his lips and kissed it carefully.

"I did choose this and you Tom. You always make it sound as if you forced me. We're getting married tomorrow!" Tom grinned at her then, obviously excited.

"I know! Aren't I lucky!" He gushed, momentarily forgetting his frustration, making Aleida laugh lightly.

"We had better get up." She sighed as she nuzzled into his neck and he 'hmpfed' softly in reply.

"What time am I being kicked out?" Tom murmured into Leia's ear. Laughing at this, Aleida poked Tom's side which made him squirm away and join in with her laughter.

"We'll be fine Thomas, it's just one night! After tomorrow you can guard me all you like." Leia chuckled as Tom gasped in mock offence.

"I don't guard you! What if something happens?"

"Nothing will happen! And even if something does, you'll be four houses down!" Giving in after a moments hesitation, Tom nodded with a sigh and kissed her cheek, pulling her up then going to get dressed.

*******************************************************************************

The rest of the day went seemingly smoothly. Lunch with, a very excited and bubbly, Michael, and a last minute check down at the little church, that they would be getting married in the next day, kept their minds off of the 'strange man' subject for a good while. Oscar knocked at the door a few hours before Tom had to leave Leia's house and sat and chatted with everyone, including Ada and Rachel, in the living room for a good few hours. 

Tom stood, looking at the time and sighed, watching as Oscar ended his conversation with Owen and stood up as well with a smile.

"We'd better be off then." Sounding reluctant, Tom turned to Aleida who smiled up at him and walked with him to the door. Once they were stood outside Tom looked around wearily, holding onto one of Leia's hands. "If anything happens tonight Aleida-" He started as he looked down at her.

"I know, I know. I'll come straight to you. I promise." Aleida assured him with a small smile and waved at Oscar as he left ahead of Tom.

"I'll see you tomorrow then." Tom whispered, with a new spark in his eyes all of a sudden as he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers, capturing her bottom lip. Leia hummed and pulled away from him.

"Can't wait." She murmured as Tom kissed her one last time, before he backed off fully and started walking down the little path backwards so he could still see her.

"Neither can I!" Looking like an excited puppy, he pointed towards the door, gesturing for Leia to go back inside the house.

Having returned to the door, Aleida looked back down the path before she shut the door, only to find Tom standing there in front of her again. 'If I could die of a heart attack! It would have been right then.' She thought as Tom smirked at her.

"Love you." He beamed before disappearing completely. Leia shook her head as she shut the door and made sure it was locked, then leant back against it.

"It's going to be a long night." Murmuring to herself, she went back into the living room to say goodnight to everyone. She had to try and sleep at least.

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Thursday 31st October, 8am

Aleida sighed with relief when she finally heard everyone else in the household start stirring and getting up. It really had been a long night, with hardly any sleep but lots of tossing and turning on her part. Every little noise that she heard, in or outside the house, kept her awake. She could feel nerves bubbling in her stomach like butterflies at the thought of going down to the church in a few hours, wondering how Tom was doing. Catherine suddenly poked her head round the bedroom door and smiled. 

"You look nervous Aleida." She stated, chuckling as she walked further into the room.

"That's because I'am!" Leia replied as she fiddled with the sheets on her lap.

"Don't be. There's no need. You're going to look beautiful. And Tom will be so proud!" Catherine gushed as she sat on the edge of Aleida's bed as Leia smiled in reply.

"Come on. Go and get ready to put the dress on and we'll start on your hair!" She exclaimed excitedly, clapping her hands together as Aleida laughed and got up off of the bed.

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"You look beautiful Aledia." Rachel stood in front of Leia, looking at how Catherine had done her hair; plaits with little orange blossom flowers intertwined pulling her blonde hair away from her face, then long curls tumbling down her back.

"I don't even have the dress on!" Aleida exclaimed, blushing slightly.

"You had better go and get it then!" Catherine interrupted from the next room.

"You only have a few hours, and I've got to do Rachel and I's hair yet!" She added, starting to sound a tad stressed.

"Alright, alright." Leia murdered, grinning at Rachel as she turned and walked down to the spare room, or Tom's old room - even though he had hardly slept there throughout his whole stay - where the dresses were hanging.

But before she could reach the room, she heard someone from the bottom of the stairs whisper her name. She wouldn't have heard it if she hadn't had sensitive hearing, but she backtracked a few steps, looked down the staircase and gasped loudly.

"Tom?!" Leia barely kept it a whisper when she saw him, standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at her in slight disbelief. "What are you doing here?!" Looking dumbfounded still, Aleida stepped down a step and watched as a small smile formed on Tom's face. "Are you ok? Did something happen?" Suddenly remembering the week before's events, she scanned him for any sign of something wrong.

"No. No, I'm fine Leia. I just...wanted to see you." This seemed to win Aleida over as she stepped down a few more steps towards Tom.

"You're not meant to see me until we're in the church! It's meant to be bad luck." She smiled, keeping her voice low still as she took Tom's out held hands. Tom nodded, looking slightly guilty.

"I'm not sure I believe in all that superstition, we are vampires after all! You look beautiful." Aleida smiled down at their feet at this.

"This isn't my dress by the way!" She exclaimed suddenly. "I was just on my way to get the dress." Rambling nervously, she smiled up at him as he laughed gently.

"As much as I'm looking forward to seeing you in it, I would honestly marry you in anything." Tom smirked down at her, the corners of his eyes crinkling as Aleida smiled and shook her head slightly.

"You had better go before my mother finds you and tries to choke you!" She chuckled.

"Not that that would work..." Tom answered, trying to be clever but only achieving a glare from Aleida. 

"Ok ok!" He backed away from Leia reluctantly. "See you in a while!"

"Bye Tom." Aleida whispered as Tom disappeared in a flash and she made her way back to the little room to get her dress.

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"Ready?" Leia's father said as Aleida slipped her arm round his own, gripping her bouquet of flowers in the other. They stood at the front door, Owen in his suit and Aleida in her ivory dress, ready to walk the short distance to the church with Ada and Rachel behind them. The little white flowers in Aleida's hair matched the pink ones in Rachel and Ada's who both had matching plaits and twists.

"I think so..." Leia replied shakily. She had always been terrified at the thought of tripping on her way down the aisle since she was a little girl, but now that she had perfect balance, she wasn't too worried. But still so nervous.

"You look so beautiful." Owen smiled proudly as he looked down at his daughter. Leia looked up at him to see tears threatening in his eyes.

"Please don't cry! You'll make me start and I can't start yet!" Aleida laughed, trying to hold back her own tears.

"Sorry my dear!" Owen chuckled, still sounding choked, as he opened the front door and stepped out with Aleida still at his arm with Rachel and Ada following behind them, holding Leia's long dress train and veil so that they didn't drag on the cobblestone road. They both beamed with excitement when Aleida looked round to ensure they were ready before walking on down the road.

"Ok. Lets go." She took a deep breath and started towards the church under the pink blossom trees that she could see over a few of the houses on the street. "Don't let me trip over anything father. I can't see as much as I usually can through the veil!" Owen gripped the hand on his arm tighter and guided them around a drain.

A few people in the surrounding houses smiled and waved as they watched from their windows and Leia did her best to reply with a wave without tripping over the long silk and lace at her feet, dropping her bouquet or disturbing the equally long veil that was nestled in her hair as a slight breeze blew it into her face.

Just over half way there, Aleida caught sight of Michael standing outside the gates of the church looking down the road, obviously on watch. She saw his jaw drop when he spotted them, wave excitedly at them, then run into the church behind him. Leia laughed to herself and shook her head, looking down at her dress to make sure it was still ok.

On arrival at the black gates of the church, all four stopped for a few last minute checks before walking down the aisle to Tom. Peeking into the small church, Leia could see family and friends, the majority hers, standing and bustling waiting for her to arrive which only fuelled the butterflies in her stomach. Tom had hardly mentioned any friends or family of his own, before or after he had proposed, so he had only invited a few friends from the street. Hundreds of bright flowers decorated the inside of the church and Leia could smell them from outside the doors. Rachel and Ada were laughing happily behind her as Owen squeezed her hand again to get her attention.

"Ready?" He asked as he had earlier but with more of a wobble in his words, looking just as nervous as she did. Aleida nodded, taking a shaky breath and looking ahead of her into the church again. As she stepped into the doorway and onto the beginning of the aisle, tears pricked in her eyes and the butterflies came to a halt when she saw Tom, who had his back to her and his head bowed down slightly, and Oscar standing at his side. Oscar beamed when he saw her and looked over to Tom to murmur something. Aleida smiled happily at people in the pews on either side of her and took a few glances over her shoulder at Ada and Rachel who smiled back, but she mainly kept her focus on Tom in front of her. She walked down the aisle to Michael playing the piano which made her smile even more, as he tried to watch her walk and play at the same time.

As Aleida was staring at Tom's back, he seemed to give in when Oscar spoke to him again and turned his head over his shoulder and met Aleida's eyes. He smiled softly as he watched her walk towards him, his eyes scanning over her quickly, looking for any sign of trouble or just admiring she wasn't sure, but tears suddenly made an appearance as the corners of his eyes crinkled happily. Leia laughed softly and didn't break eye contact with her soon to be husband until she was stood right next to him and Owen lifted the shorter side of the veil over her head and away from her face. He then smiled proudly and leant down to kiss Aleida's cheek before taking a seat next to Catherine, who was already crying into a handkerchief. Once Ada and Rachel had laid down Leia's dress and veil and taken her bouquet of flowers, they went and stood on either side of Oscar who had taken a few steps back. 

Tom remained speechless as he beamed down at Aleida and weaved one of her hands with his which he lifted and kissed gently as Aleida blushed, feeling all the eyes behind her directly on her and Tom. 

"You look beautiful." He whispered gently before reluctantly turning to the front to face the officiator who smiled at them both then looked down at the little book held in his hands. Leia also dragged her wide eyes away from Tom's, still smiling, face but squeezed his hand gently and felt him squeeze back harder as the elder man in front of her started to speak. In the corner of her eye, she could see Tom keep making side-ward glances at her as if to check she was still there, and every time he did, she also looked round at him with a smirk on her face. 

As the wedding officially started, she heard the wooden doors of the church open then close again, followed by two pairs of footsteps and pews being sat on. But before she knew it, the officiator had started the one and only hymn that Tom and herself had wanted so she didn't get a chance to see who had sneaked in. Tom and herself both struggled to keep up with the lyrics as they both smiled at each other excitedly. When the church went back to an excited silence, the man in white and purple in front of Tom and Aleida, asked them for the vows that they had chosen. 

They both turned to each other and smiled as Tom took Aleida's hands in his gently. He seemed to struggle with his words for a moment, swallowing a few times, but successfully composed himself before meeting Leia's bright eyes and saying his vows, loud and clear.

"I, Thomas William Hiddleston take you, Aleida Evelyn Harris, to be my wedded wife, my forever friend and love from this day forward. I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow. I promise to love you unconditionally, to honour and respect you, to laugh and cry with you, and to cherish you for as long as we both shall live." Tom let out a short breath of relief, a wide grin spreading across his face, having successfully spoken his vows, which had obviously put a lump in Aleida's throat and tears in her eyes at his words. She pulled in a deep breath, and let it out slowly, looking down at their hands as a tear dripped onto them which made Tom chuckle above her, squeezing her hands again. "Are you ok darling?" Tom whispered, so only Aleida could hear, as he kissed her hand again. Leia laughed quietly and nodded, looking back up at him. 

"I, Aleida Evelyn Harris, take you, Thomas William Hiddleston, for my wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health. I will love and honour you all the days of my life. I take you with all of your faults and your strengths as I offer myself to you with all of my faults and strengths. I choose you as the person with whom I will spend my life." When she finished, Aleida instantly smiled up at Tom, who was equally affected by her words. He sniffed and pulled Leia a bit closer to him with their connected hands, wanting more contact of any kind, but they were soon interrupted by the short man in front of them, who cleared his throat. 

"Oscar, would you please bring the rings?" Oscar looked startled for a second before searching his pockets frantically, suddenly whipping out the little ring box which contained both rings. Tom and Aleida, along with the majority of the guests, laughed at Oscar's actions as he smiled and laughed along, moving to Tom's side. The laughter in the little church died down as the priest started again. He indicated for Tom to take Aleida's ring from Oscar and placed it half-way onto her ring finger. "Do you, Thomas William Hiddleston" He paused, looking at Tom. "Take Aleida Evelyn Harris as your wedded wife?" He asked, looking back up from his book. 

"I do." Tom answered confidently, almost before the priest could finish, smiling as he slid the little golden ring the rest of the way onto Aleida's finger. Aleida then got Tom's ring from Oscar and did the same.

"Do you Aleida Evelyn Harris, take Thomas William Hiddleston as your wedded husband?" 

"I do." Leia replied with a wobble to her words still and pushed Tom's identical ring onto his finger. The priest smiled happily at this before saying "Well, at that, I am pleased to announce you man and wife! You may now kiss your bride." And with a grin plastered to his face, Tom dove down and kissed Aleida intimately, as if they weren't in front of a church full of their cheering family and friends. Catherine and Owen were crying proudly at the front, along with Michael who stood beside them, pretending not to cry. One of Tom's hands cradled the back of Leia's head, being careful not to pull on the white lace veil, and the other held her waist as he leant her back, not wanting to pull away from her. Aleida placed both her hands on Tom's shoulders, smiling into the kiss and laughed when he finally leant his head back to grin down at her. As he pulled her back into a standing position she wobbled giddily when Tom let her go, despite having the ability to have perfect balance, so Tom wrapped one of his arms back around her waist with a smirk, as they turned and smiled at all their guests who were all standing and either cheering or clapping. 

Aleida scanned the back row of the church for the late comers and her eyes widened in shock when she saw Dr Watson and Mr Holmes, sitting rather than standing like the rest of the guests. She turned to Tom who frowned at her shocked expression and glanced over to where she had been looking. His expression turned slightly grim when he spotted them but then his eyes flicked to another spot at the back of the church and they grew wider and he seemed to lose even more of the colour in his face. Aleida was looking up at him with her eyebrows drawn together. 

"What is it?" She asked.

"Well I certainly didn't invite them." Tom murmured into her hair which he kissed as he turned them back round to Oscar and the bridesmaids, ignoring her question. Once Leia had collected her flowers and hugged her two friends and Tom shook hands with Oscar, they both walked back down the aisle as confetti and rice was thrown over them from the pews on either side. They headed back down the cobblestone street towards Tom's house, where the reception was all set up to be held within a few minutes. As they approached the big brick house, very similar to Aleida's, Tom swept Aleida up, ensuring all the material of the dress was safe and continued walking towards the door.

"Welcome home, Mrs Hiddleston!" Tom exclaimed as he bounded up the walkway excitedly, still grinning. Leia laughed loudly as she wrapped her arms round his neck, careful not to hit his face with her flowers and kissed his cheek gently. 

"I don't think I'll get enough of being called that!" Aleida marveled as Tom paused to kiss her quickly before carring her over the threshold. Placing her down after he shut the door, Tom observed Aleida more closely, taking a step back to get a better view. His eyes glowed as he took hold of Leia's bouquet and set them down amongst some decorative flowers on a table. He turned and was suddenly back in front of Leia, hands on either side of her waist. 

"You look gorgeous. I much prefer this to the dressing gown you had on this morning." Aleida laughed at this as Tom smoothed down the ivory dress at her sides. 

"You don't look too bad yourself!" Leia teased as she eyed the black waistcoat and matching jacket that was longer at the back. 

"We have..." Tom paused to pull out his pocket watch and check the time. "Six minutes. What shall we do?" He grinned down at her with an eyebrow raised. Aleida smirked and wrapped her arms round his neck and pondered for a minute. 

"Maybe try and figure out why Sherlock Holmes and John Watson were at our wedding?" She suggested, looking tense again. "What was wrong in there at the end? You looked...pale. Even more so than usual." Tom sighed and rested his forehead against Leia's. 

"I don't know why they were there. Perhaps we can ask them if they invite themselves to the reception as well!" He replied, his voice getting higher in frustration which made Aleida smile. "I thought I saw something at the back of the church but I think I was just imagining it." Tom added, looking nervous again as he bumped noses with Aleida. 

"Well you must have a good imagination, having seen your face when you saw it. What was it that you saw? Or thought you saw?" Tom drew his head back at this and looked at her steadily, chewing his bottom lip. But he was cut off from answering when somebody knocked on the front door next to them. Tom smiled and ducked to kiss Leia quickly before turning to the front door. 

"That was a quick six minutes." He sighed before swinging the door open to reveal a beaming Michael and the rest of the guests from the church behind him. "Come in!" Tom said cheerily, with Aleida stood by his side they both greeted all their friends and family individually as they came through the door. When it finally come to the last few people, Holmes and Watson came through the door as if invited. 

"Mr and Mrs Hiddleston! It's nice to meet you again. And congratulations." Dr Watson said, shaking Tom's hand then nodding to Aleida. Tom, wide eyed, nodded and smiled slightly at him before saying;

"I don't mean to be rude Dr Watson and Mr Holmes" He peered around Watson to see Holmes standing there, observing the inside of the house with his hands clasped behind his back. "But... why are you at our wedding?" Watson nodded in understanding. 

"John please. And Sherlock." He pointed behind him at Sherlock who seemed to snap out of his daze and raised an eyebrow at John. "We're sorry to intrude, but we're still investigating these murders which have all occurred in this street and a wedding is a perfect opportunity for us to observe the goings on around here. We should have asked or at least informed you first. We can leave if you would feel more comfortable?" John offered and Sherlock peered over his shoulder, eyes flicking between Tom and Aleida who both hesitated for a few seconds. 

"Please come in." Aleida responded suddenly with a smile, ignoring Tom's double take in her direction and gestured for them to enter the house. 

"Thank you very much. It was a beautiful wedding!" John said politely and Sherlock smiled in response and followed John into the house without saying a word. Once they had gone, Tom looked down at Aleida frantically. 

"We have nothing to hide Tom! It was best to let them in and see for themselves that nothing is wrong here." Leia spoke quietly, trying reassure him.

"Other than the fact that we're vampires!" Tom ran one hand through his hair and had the other on his hip. Aleida grabbed both of them and pulled them between them to stop him fidgeting.

"Yes, but how would they figure that one out? I know Holmes is clever, but I don't think he would come to that conclusion Tom. And we certainly haven't murdered anyone! Unless you have something to tell me?" Leia raised an eyebrow up at him and a smile cracked his panic stricken face. He sighed.

"No. It wasn't me Aleida." Tom mumbled in defeat and wrapped his arms around her, resting his head on top of hers. "Hopefully they'll leave early. I don't want them to ruin our day." Aleida grunted in agreement and pulled away from him.

"Come on. Lets go in there." She said, tugging on his hand and pulling him into the big living room where everyone was gathered. 

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After a few hours, everyone had had something to eat and were enjoying themselves, including John and Sherlock, in the large living room with music playing in the background. Tom managed to catch Aleida, who was constantly surrounded by a different crowd of people every time he looked, and was able to subtlely pull her away and out of the living room. 

"Where are we going?" Aleida quizzed as she willingly followed behind him, squeezing his hand. Tom turned and grinned down at her, just outside another of the downstairs rooms that was filled with chairs and bookcases. 

"I would like five minutes with my wife for myself!" Tom confessed, still grinning. Leia's eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled back up at him and was about to answer before being cut off by Tom pressing his lips to hers urgently, hooking his hands under her elbows. Stepping back unsurely, Tom pulled Aleida back through the doorway behind him and kicked the door shut, pressing Leia against it, both hands on her silk covered waist and the other to the back of her neck. They were totally absorbed, both pairs of eyes shut and unaware of their surroundings.

"I always wondered where the bride and groom disappeared to half-way through the wedding reception." 

Aleida gasped loudly, jerking away from Tom, almost hitting her head on the door at the sound of the voice and just about saw the flash of Tom's movements, as he whipped around to face the direction of the new voice and held Leia behind him protectively. His eyes were wide when he spotted the figure sitting in an armchair, staring out of the front window, looking bored. Curly brown hair stuck up at odd angles and his dark clothes looked tattered and dusty. Aleida looked around Tom carefully, not able to move too far with Tom's arm bent behind him and around her to keep her there. Tom continued to observe the man sitting in his house and his eyes grew even wider when he really looked at him.

"Emrick?" Tom breathed, barely saying the name. But the man turned his head to look up at Tom, face blank but hearing him perfectly. Aleida frowned when she saw the crystal eyes like Tom's and her own but in a light shade of green. She looked between Emrick's still blank expression and Tom's confused one as they stared at each other without blinking. 

"I-" Tom paused. "I thought you were-"

"Dead?" The vampire interrupted and smiled faintly in Tom's direction. He stood abruptly from his chair and took a step towards Tom. "It seems that job wasn't done properly." He added, smile growing wider. Tom huffed out a laugh and shook his head at the man in front of him in disbelief.

Aleida quickly backed up in suprise when the new vampire suddenly had his arms wrapped around Tom's neck and they were both laughing, slapping each others backs as men do. They were both grinning like madmen when Tom stepped back and looked over his shoulder to check Aleida, who still looked completely confused, was still there. 

"Are you not going to introduce me to this beautiful lady?" Emrick asked, clearing his throat as he straightened out his tattered black jacket and smiled at Aleida, finally having noticed her presence.

"Yes! Of course." Tom snapped out of his daze and stood at Leia's side, wrapping an arm around her waist. "This is Aleida, my wife. Aleida, this is Emrick. He's an old...very old friend." 

"You make me sound old Thomas." Emrick raised his eyebrow playfully then bowed dramatically in front of Aleida and kissed her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet the lady that has finally managed to win Thomas' heart!" Aleida smiled at Emrick at this and Tom rolled his eyes. "It's a hard thing to do!" Emrick shrugged his shoulders in defence and let go of Aleida's hand. 

"It's a pleasure to finally meet one of Tom's friends! I've never had the pleasure of meeting any before. I was starting to think he didn't have any!" Leia replied, winking at Tom. Emrick laughed at this and looked over at Tom with an eyebrow raised in question. Aleida finally had the chance to observe the man in front of her close up. She noticed a long jagged scar going down the left side of his face and similar, smaller scars going down his neck and under his collar. She'd noticed similar scars on Tom, stretching down his back, but she had never asked about them. Perhaps it was time she should.

"How are you here Emrick?" Tom asked suddenly, pulling Aleida from her thoughts. Tom frowned as he watched his friend sit back down stiffly in the chair he had found him in. 

"Did you really think I could be killed?" Emrick asked, looking slightly offended as Tom sat opposite him in an identical chair.

"Well yes. I thought you were dead." Tom replied, looking confused. Emrick sighed and reached over to pat Tom's shoulder reassuringly. 

"You underestimate me Tom! But let's discuss this later. I don't want to ruin you and your wife's day. If you'll have me that is?" Tom glanced over at Aleida who nodded eagerly at this. 

"Of course we'll have you. For as long as you like." Emrick beamed at them both and jumped up from the chair with a clap of his hands. 

"I haven't been to a wedding reception for centuries! Especially a vampire's wedding reception!" The vampire rubbed his hands together excitedly and made his way to the door. 

"Emrick! Don't get any ideas Emrick! Is Erasmus here?" Tom asked quickly before Emrick could escape through the door and into the living room. Emrick stopped and considered this for a moment.

"He's around here, somewhere." He replied simply, giving them both a wink before disappearing. Tom groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose, sqeezing his eyes shut. Aleida, wide eyed, turned away from where Emrick had stood to look up at Tom's screwed up face. She reached out and held onto the crook of his elbow. 

"He seemed a little..." Leia paused, controlling her expression carefully, not wanting to hurt Tom's feelings. 

"Manic?" Tom suggested, peering down at Leia with a small, somewhat tired, smile. Aleida's eyebrows pulled together. 

"Yes. You could say that." She agreed, as she let Tom pull her closer to him and wrap his arms around her for comfort and burying his face into her neck. Leia smoothed down the blond curls at the back of his head comfortingly. 

"You wait until you meet his brother." Aleida just about caught what Tom said, his groan muffled into her pale skin. Lacing her fingers through his hair, she tugged lightly, silently asking Tom to look at her. 

"Brother?!" She squeaked, making Tom laugh lightly at her expression. He squeezed her waist gently then returned to placing kisses down her neck. 

"Yes. Twin brother. Erasmus." He mumbled in between kisses while Aleida simply gaped and squeezed his shoulders.

"Twins?! You mean to tell me, as well as us, we are going to have two twin vampires living in our house?" Tom stopped his kissing for a minute to consider this. Leia felt him smirk against her skin. 

"They're not identical if that makes you feel any better?" Aleida closed her eyes and snorted at this, unable to keep the amusement from her expression. "Especially in madness. Erasmus is even worse!" He added. They both laughed quietly until Tom framed Leia's face with his hands and kissed her as he had before they had come across Emrick. They started backing towards the door they had previously come through, until they heard Aleida's mother calling her from somewhere in the house, which brought them to another abrupt stop. Tom sighed against Leia's cheek. "We had better get back out there before our guests get suspicious. Or Emrick or Erasmus try to eat someone." Aleida jerked back at this, staring wide-eyed at Tom who laughed at her reaction. "I'm joking Aleida. I don't think they've lost enough of their marbles to go that far!" He chuckled, tucking some of the hair he had earlier disturbed behind Aleida's ear. 

"Come on then! I'm not going to take that chance Thomas!" Leia almost dragged a smirking Tom the rest of the way to the door and yanked it open.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you've enjoyed reading so far! If you wondered what Chanson Baladée sounds like you can listen here > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-FrWn0lYJg  
> Lots more chapters to come! :D


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